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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. root — of a word
  3. root — of a plant
  4. rash — a series
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. rash — hasty
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. root — the cause
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. capital — money
  14. row — a line
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. capital — a city
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. row — to paddle
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. ruler — for measuring

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