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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.

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: fall · court · saw · season · track · bore · root · rest

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. saw — the tool
  3. track — a path
  4. saw — the tool
  5. rest — what's left
  6. court — for sport
  7. bore — to tire
  8. season — in sport
  9. track — a song
  10. fall — to drop
  11. court — of law
  12. bore — to drill
  13. fall — the season
  14. rest — a break
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. track — to keep track
  17. root — the cause
  18. root — of a word
  19. rest — what's left
  20. fall — to drop
  21. court — of a king
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. root — of a plant
  24. bore — gave birth

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