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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 120 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: lie · wake · ground · cold · root · season · bowl · foot

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. foot — a measure
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. root — of a word
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. cold — an illness
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. ground — crushed
  12. ground — the earth
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. ground — a position
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. wake — a trail
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. lie — to recline
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. root — the cause
  22. root — of a plant
  23. season — of the year
  24. season — in sport

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