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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: ball · last · row · deal · root · game · staff · spring

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. staff — a stick
  3. spring — the season
  4. ball — a great time
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. ball — a dance
  8. last — finally
  9. row — a line
  10. staff — employees
  11. spring — a coil
  12. deal — to handle
  13. last — final
  14. row — to paddle
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. root — of a word
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. spring — of water
  20. staff — employees
  21. game — a match
  22. root — of a plant
  23. game — wild animals
  24. last — to go on

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