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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. root — of a word
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. chip — to eat
  7. row — a line
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. last — finally
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. last — to go on
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. chip — for betting
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. row — to paddle
  20. band — a music group
  21. last — final
  22. band — a ring
  23. root — of a plant
  24. wave — of the sea

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