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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: ground · root · last · season · clip · mark · patient · fine

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. last — to go on
  4. ground — crushed
  5. clip — for paper
  6. root — of a plant
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. last — finally
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. last — final
  12. clip — a video
  13. season — in sport
  14. mark — a grade
  15. ground — the earth
  16. root — of a word
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. clip — to cut
  20. season — of the year
  21. ground — a position
  22. fine — high quality
  23. mark — a trace
  24. root — the cause

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