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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 president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. chest — a box
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. deal — to handle
  9. root — of a plant
  10. plane — a tool
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. root — the cause
  14. chest — of your body
  15. shower — to wash
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. capital — money
  18. shower — rain
  19. chest — of your body
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. squash — the sport
  22. capital — a city
  23. root — of a word
  24. plane — in geometry

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