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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 the members were all out of tune.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. cap — a hat
  3. file — a tool
  4. file — a document
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. root — of a word
  8. root — the cause
  9. bat — the animal
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. rest — what's left
  12. perch — the fish
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. file — a line of people
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. cap — of ice
  17. root — of a plant
  18. cap — a lid
  19. rest — a break
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. bat — in an idiom

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