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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. chest — of your body
  5. cap — a lid
  6. root — of a plant
  7. chest — of your body
  8. fine — high quality
  9. root — of a word
  10. chair — a leader
  11. root — the cause
  12. cap — a hat
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. chest — a box
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. rule — government
  19. cap — of ice
  20. fine — all right
  21. rule — a law
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. chair — a professorship

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