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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.

Make a worksheet

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: date · bound · cold · fine · root · trunk · saw · perch

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. cold — not warm
  3. saw — the tool
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. root — of a word
  7. perch — the fish
  8. bound — obliged
  9. saw — the tool
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. root — the cause
  14. fine — all right
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. bound — certain
  18. cold — an illness
  19. root — of a plant
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. bound — tied together
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. date — the fruit

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