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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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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 · rest · date · wind · present · saw · pop · stick

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. saw — the tool
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. date — the fruit
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. saw — the tool
  8. root — of a plant
  9. present — there
  10. wind — moving air
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. wind — moving air
  14. rest — what's left
  15. pop — soda
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. pop — to visit
  18. rest — a break
  19. pop — music
  20. root — the cause
  21. present — the time now
  22. root — of a word
  23. rest — what's left
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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