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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: pit · root · content · drill · rule · cold · perch · hide

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. root — of a word
  4. root — the cause
  5. pit — in a race
  6. content — happy
  7. root — of a plant
  8. drill — the tool
  9. perch — the fish
  10. pit — a hole
  11. drill — army training
  12. rule — a law
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. cold — not warm
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. rule — government
  18. content — the amount
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. drill — a practice
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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