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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. root — of a word
  3. perch — the fish
  4. mine — for digging
  5. root — of a plant
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bear — the animal
  8. foot — a measure
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. root — the cause
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. tear — from crying
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. bear — the animal
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. ruler — for measuring

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