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

Word bank: root · patient · spring · saw · pit · cap · kid · band

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. cap — a lid
  3. root — of a plant
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. pit — in a race
  6. saw — the tool
  7. root — of a word
  8. cap — of ice
  9. spring — a coil
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. kid — child
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. saw — the tool
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. spring — of water
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. root — the cause
  20. cap — a hat
  21. spring — the season
  22. pit — a hole
  23. band — a music group
  24. band — a ring

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