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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 116 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 elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. root — of a plant
  6. fine — high quality
  7. root — of a word
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. shower — rain
  15. root — the cause
  16. dip — to sink
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. fork — in a road
  19. field — for sport
  20. shower — to wash
  21. field — farmland
  22. fine — all right
  23. field — a subject
  24. fork — to eat with

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