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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 120 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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. cap — of ice
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. last — to go on
  5. rock — music
  6. root — of a plant
  7. root — of a word
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. track — a song
  10. root — the cause
  11. cap — a hat
  12. rock — a stone
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. last — final
  16. hand — help
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. cap — a lid
  20. hand — in cards
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. plane — a tool
  23. track — to keep track
  24. last — finally

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