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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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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: rash · key · bear · cell · plane · row · clip · root

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. clip — for paper
  5. row — a line
  6. key — for a lock
  7. rash — hasty
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — the animal
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. cell — a phone
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. cell — in biology
  14. root — of a plant
  15. plane — a tool
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. clip — to cut
  18. clip — a video
  19. root — the cause
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. row — to paddle
  22. rash — a series
  23. root — of a word
  24. key — in music

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