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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. root — the cause
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. race — humankind
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. sharp — clever
  14. race — a contest
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. root — of a plant
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. cold — an illness
  19. race — the arms race
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. cold — not warm
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. root — of a word

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