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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. field — farmland
  3. prune — to trim
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. present — the time now
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. cue — a signal
  8. present — a gift
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. prune — to trim
  12. root — of a plant
  13. bark — to shout
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. present — there
  16. field — a subject
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. capital — a city
  20. capital — money
  21. field — for sport
  22. cue — a hint
  23. cue — for pool
  24. root — of a word

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