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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. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. season — in sport
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. land — a country
  5. root — the cause
  6. capital — a city
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. capital — money
  10. season — of the year
  11. bat — the animal
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. press — to push
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. press — a publisher
  18. band — a music group
  19. land — to come down
  20. press — newspapers
  21. band — a ring
  22. root — of a word
  23. land — ground
  24. stand — to bear

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