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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 116 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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  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. rash — a series
  2. land — to come down
  3. land — a country
  4. root — of a word
  5. root — of a plant
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. clip — for paper
  8. land — ground
  9. cell — a phone
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. mark — a trace
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. clip — to cut
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. mark — a grade
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. cell — in biology
  22. clip — a video
  23. rash — hasty
  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