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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 120 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 train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. bore — to tire
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. bore — to drill
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. last — finally
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. root — the cause
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. bark — to shout
  16. wind — moving air
  17. last — to go on
  18. last — final
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. root — of a word
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. root — of a plant
  24. wind — moving air

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