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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cold — not warm
  4. root — of a word
  5. saw — the tool
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bark — to shout
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. band — a ring
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. season — in sport
  14. root — of a plant
  15. cold — an illness
  16. tear — to rip
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. band — a music group
  19. saw — the tool
  20. kick — in football
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. season — of the year
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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