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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. root — of a word
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bat — the animal
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. content — happy
  9. swing — music
  10. root — of a plant
  11. chair — a leader
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. content — the amount
  14. spring — a coil
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. swing — to play on
  17. spring — of water
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. swing — in golf
  24. spring — the season

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