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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: hide · ground · mark · march · bowl · root · tear · key

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. mark — a trace
  3. tear — from crying
  4. march — music
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. ground — crushed
  7. march — the month
  8. march — the month
  9. key — the most important part
  10. root — the cause
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. ground — a position
  13. root — of a word
  14. mark — a grade
  15. ground — the earth
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. root — of a plant
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. tear — to rip
  22. key — for a lock
  23. key — in music
  24. tear — from crying

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