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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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Word bank
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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: spring · wake · temple · cap · root · roll · lean · saw

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. roll — a cake
  3. cap — a lid
  4. spring — the season
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. wake — a trail
  7. lean — thin
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. spring — a coil
  10. cap — a hat
  11. spring — of water
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. saw — the tool
  15. root — of a word
  16. roll — a list
  17. saw — the tool
  18. root — of a plant
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. cap — of ice
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. root — the cause
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. lean — to bend

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