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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. chair — a leader
  5. root — of a plant
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. root — the cause
  11. last — to go on
  12. scale — in music
  13. bark — to shout
  14. scale — size or range
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. last — final
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. root — of a word
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. deal — to handle
  24. deal — an agreement

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