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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. tube — a container
  3. drill — army training
  4. spring — of water
  5. spring — the season
  6. root — the cause
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. spring — a coil
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. chest — of your body
  11. drill — the tool
  12. root — of a plant
  13. root — of a word
  14. drill — a practice
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. chest — a box
  17. tube — the underground
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. chest — of your body
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. straw — dry grass

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