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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. perch — the fish
  3. root — the cause
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. cold — an illness
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. rush — hurry
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. cold — not warm
  12. kid — to tease
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. cue — for pool
  16. cue — a signal
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cue — a hint
  22. root — of a plant
  23. root — of a word
  24. kid — child

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