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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. root — the cause
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. root — of a plant
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. plane — a tool
  7. rash — hasty
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. kid — to tease
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. key — in music
  13. bat — the animal
  14. rash — a series
  15. key — the most important part
  16. key — for a lock
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. root — of a word
  19. squash — the sport
  20. kid — child
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. rash — on the skin

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