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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. root — of a word
  3. wound — an injury
  4. spring — of water
  5. ground — crushed
  6. cue — a hint
  7. pop — music
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. wound — an injury
  10. cue — for pool
  11. cell — a phone
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. cap — a lid
  14. ground — the earth
  15. pop — to visit
  16. cue — a signal
  17. cap — a hat
  18. ground — a position
  19. cap — of ice
  20. pop — soda
  21. root — of a plant
  22. spring — a coil
  23. spring — the season
  24. root — the cause

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