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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. cold — an illness
  3. chest — of your body
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. squash — the sport
  6. root — the cause
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. pit — in a race
  9. root — of a word
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. squash — to crush
  12. root — of a plant
  13. pit — a hole
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. chest — a box
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. tube — a container
  20. chest — of your body
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. cold — not warm
  23. wax — to grow
  24. tube — the underground

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