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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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. root — of a word
  3. chest — of your body
  4. cold — not warm
  5. root — of a plant
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. club — a group
  8. pit — a hole
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. club — for golf
  12. stem — to come from
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. date — the fruit
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. root — the cause
  19. chest — a box
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. snap — to click
  22. club — for dancing
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. cold — an illness

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