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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: bear · root · safe · capital · spring · saw · drill · net

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. drill — the tool
  4. bear — the animal
  5. root — of a plant
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. root — of a word
  8. bear — the animal
  9. capital — money
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. net — after costs
  12. spring — the season
  13. saw — the tool
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. saw — the tool
  16. root — the cause
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. drill — a practice
  19. spring — a coil
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. net — for catching
  22. capital — a city
  23. drill — army training
  24. net — 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