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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. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. root — of a word
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bore — to tire
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. march — music
  9. chip — to eat
  10. march — the month
  11. last — finally
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. last — final
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. clip — for paper
  16. root — the cause
  17. chip — for betting
  18. clip — to cut
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. march — the month
  21. last — to go on
  22. bore — to drill
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. clip — a video

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