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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: cold · jam · toast · race · cell · season · root · craft

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. season — in sport
  3. race — the arms race
  4. root — of a word
  5. race — humankind
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. cell — a phone
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. craft — a skill
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. season — of the year
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. toast — bread
  15. cold — an illness
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. root — the cause
  19. race — a contest
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cold — not warm
  23. craft — boats
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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