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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 tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. root — of a word
  3. wound — an injury
  4. pitch — completely
  5. root — of a plant
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. shower — to wash
  8. root — the cause
  9. fork — in a road
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. wound — an injury
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. deal — to handle
  14. mate — a friend
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. mate — a partner
  19. shower — rain
  20. mate — to breed
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. fork — a garden tool

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