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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. land — ground
  4. saw — the tool
  5. land — to come down
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. saw — the tool
  8. drill — army training
  9. drill — a practice
  10. root — of a word
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. cell — a phone
  13. file — a document
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. file — a line of people
  16. file — a tool
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. cell — in biology
  19. land — a country
  20. root — the cause
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. prune — to trim
  23. drill — the tool
  24. prune — to trim

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