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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. court — of law
  3. key — the most important part
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. fork — in a road
  6. season — of the year
  7. tear — from crying
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. race — humankind
  10. root — of a plant
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. chair — a leader
  13. tear — to rip
  14. season — in sport
  15. race — a contest
  16. court — of a king
  17. race — the arms race
  18. root — of a word
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. court — for sport
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. root — the cause
  23. key — in music
  24. key — for a lock

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