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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fork · mug · tear · root · rule · capital

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. mug — a face
  3. tear — from crying
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. tear — from crying
  6. root — of a word
  7. mug — a cup
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. root — the cause
  10. capital — money
  11. tear — to rip
  12. mug — to rob
  13. fork — in a road
  14. capital — a city
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. root — of a plant
  17. rule — a law
  18. rule — government

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