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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 · root · ruler · deal · pit · court · fall · content

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. pit — a hole
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. root — of a plant
  6. deal — to handle
  7. pit — in a race
  8. content — happy
  9. cold — an illness
  10. content — the amount
  11. court — of law
  12. court — for sport
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. fall — to drop
  16. root — the cause
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. fall — to drop
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. cold — not warm
  23. fall — the season
  24. court — of a king

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