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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 a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. track — a path
  4. rush — hurry
  5. cell — a phone
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. wind — moving air
  8. track — a song
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. land — to come down
  11. root — of a word
  12. land — ground
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. pitch — completely
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. root — the cause
  18. cell — in biology
  19. wind — moving air
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. land — a country
  23. track — to keep track
  24. rush — to hurry

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