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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 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. saw — the tool
  4. last — to go on
  5. saw — the tool
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. root — the cause
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. last — final
  14. band — a ring
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. fork — in a road
  17. toast — bread
  18. bore — to drill
  19. last — finally
  20. root — of a plant
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. bore — to tire
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. band — a music group

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