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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 116 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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. chip — for betting
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. rash — hasty
  7. root — the cause
  8. root — of a plant
  9. staff — a stick
  10. track — a path
  11. track — a song
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. staff — employees
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. chip — to eat
  18. rash — a series
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. staff — employees
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. track — to keep track

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