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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: mine · wax · cabinet · staff · root · pop · spring · bowl

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. staff — employees
  3. root — the cause
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. spring — the season
  6. wax — to grow
  7. root — of a plant
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. pop — to visit
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. staff — employees
  16. pop — soda
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. mine — for digging
  19. spring — a coil
  20. staff — a stick
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. spring — of water
  23. root — of a word
  24. pop — 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