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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 fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. root — of a word
  3. track — a path
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. rash — a series
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. last — to go on
  9. rash — hasty
  10. track — a song
  11. last — finally
  12. last — final
  13. root — the cause
  14. bass — low music
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. root — of a plant
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. branch — a division
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. track — to keep track

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