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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 120 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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. spring — the season
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. content — happy
  6. root — of a plant
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. root — of a word
  9. bound — certain
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. content — the amount
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. spring — a coil
  16. root — the cause
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. plane — a tool
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. dip — to sink
  21. bound — tied together
  22. fork — in a road
  23. bound — obliged
  24. leaves — of a tree

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