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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. root — of a plant
  3. land — to come down
  4. cold — an illness
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. bulb — for light
  10. saw — the tool
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. land — a country
  14. chip — for betting
  15. root — of a word
  16. root — the cause
  17. saw — the tool
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cap — a hat
  21. chip — to eat
  22. cap — a lid
  23. land — ground
  24. cap — of ice

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