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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: last · spring · kid · root · cell · cap · board · sharp

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. cap — of ice
  4. board — a committee
  5. cell — a phone
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. root — the cause
  8. spring — of water
  9. root — of a word
  10. kid — child
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. root — of a plant
  13. cell — in biology
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. kid — to tease
  16. spring — a coil
  17. board — to get on
  18. sharp — clever
  19. cap — a hat
  20. cap — a lid
  21. last — finally
  22. spring — the season
  23. last — final
  24. last — to go on

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