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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. ground — the earth
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. bark — to shout
  7. ground — a position
  8. ground — crushed
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. root — of a word
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. wound — an injury
  13. root — of a plant
  14. wound — an injury
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. lean — to bend
  20. root — the cause
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. vault — a safe
  24. lean — thin

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