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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 bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. root — of a word
  5. stem — to come from
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. spell — magic
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. swing — music
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. spell — letters
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. root — the cause
  15. court — of law
  16. court — of a king
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. swing — in golf
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. swing — to play on
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. root — of a plant
  23. spell — a short time
  24. court — for sport

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