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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: wake · spring · pound · root · leaves · chair · ground · content

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. spring — a coil
  4. root — the cause
  5. ground — crushed
  6. content — happy
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. content — the amount
  11. ground — the earth
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. ground — a position
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. wake — a trail
  17. root — of a word
  18. chair — a leader
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. root — of a plant
  21. spring — of water
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. pound — a weight

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