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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. field — farmland
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. root — of a word
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. tear — from crying
  7. field — for sport
  8. row — to paddle
  9. key — in music
  10. root — of a plant
  11. row — a line
  12. dip — to sink
  13. field — a subject
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. tear — from crying
  17. last — to go on
  18. pit — a hole
  19. pit — in a race
  20. tear — to rip
  21. key — for a lock
  22. last — finally
  23. key — the most important part
  24. last — final

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com