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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. chip — for betting
  3. root — of a word
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. root — the cause
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. root — of a plant
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. snap — to click
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — farmland
  13. court — for sport
  14. court — of law
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. field — for sport
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. court — of a king
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. pitch — completely
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. chip — to eat

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