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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. clip — for paper
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. ball — a dance
  6. spring — of water
  7. ball — a great time
  8. root — of a plant
  9. clip — a video
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. squash — to crush
  12. squash — the sport
  13. fine — all right
  14. root — the cause
  15. spring — the season
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. spring — a coil
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. root — of a word
  20. fine — high quality
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. clip — to cut
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. wake — a trail

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