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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. prune — to trim
  3. spell — a short time
  4. chest — a box
  5. band — a music group
  6. prune — to trim
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. saw — the tool
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. spell — letters
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. chest — of your body
  13. spell — magic
  14. present — there
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. chest — of your body
  17. saw — the tool
  18. lie — to recline
  19. root — the cause
  20. present — a gift
  21. present — the time now
  22. band — a ring
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. root — of a plant

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