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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. swing — music
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. chest — of your body
  5. root — of a plant
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. root — the cause
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. tear — from crying
  10. bark — to shout
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. root — of a word
  13. swing — in golf
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. swing — to play on
  16. tear — from crying
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. foot — a measure
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. chest — a box
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. tear — to rip
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. chest — of your body

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