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

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  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. root — the cause
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. face — to confront
  4. spring — the season
  5. spring — a coil
  6. spring — of water
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. game — wild animals
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. face — part of the head
  12. root — of a plant
  13. game — a match
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. face — to point toward
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. deal — to handle
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. root — of a word
  23. bark — to shout
  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