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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cold · sharp · leaves · march · root · fork · prune · hide

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. march — music
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. sharp — clever
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. fork — in a road
  10. prune — to trim
  11. root — of a plant
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. cold — not warm
  14. march — the month
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. cold — an illness
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. march — the month
  22. prune — to trim
  23. root — the cause
  24. root — of a word

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