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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. root — of a plant
  3. cell — in biology
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. capital — a city
  6. rest — what's left
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. capital — money
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. rest — what's left
  13. cell — a phone
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. rule — a law
  18. root — the cause
  19. rule — government
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. rest — a break
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. root — of a word

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