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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: root · race · spring · game · foot · chest · bay · saw

  1. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. spring — the season
  3. game — wild animals
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. saw — the tool
  7. spring — a coil
  8. race — humankind
  9. root — the cause
  10. spring — of water
  11. foot — a measure
  12. race — the arms race
  13. root — of a word
  14. game — a match
  15. saw — the tool
  16. root — of a plant
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. race — a contest
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. chest — of your body
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. chest — of your body
  24. chest — a box

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