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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. bark — to shout
  4. lie — to recline
  5. squash — the sport
  6. chest — of your body
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. squash — to crush
  9. stem — to come from
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. track — to keep track
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. track — a song
  16. root — of a plant
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. chest — of your body
  22. root — the cause
  23. track — a path
  24. root — of a word

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