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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 124 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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. bulb — for light
  3. root — of a plant
  4. lean — thin
  5. suit — to fit
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. root — of a word
  8. roll — a list
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. file — a tool
  11. root — the cause
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. suit — in cards
  14. lean — to bend
  15. file — a document
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. roll — a cake
  18. bulb — for light
  19. cold — not warm
  20. file — a line of people
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. foot — a measure
  24. cold — an illness

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