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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. cue — for pool
  3. pit — a hole
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. current — happening now
  7. pit — in a race
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. cue — a signal
  10. current — electric
  11. stem — to come from
  12. file — a line of people
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. root — the cause
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. root — of a plant
  21. current — of water
  22. cue — a hint
  23. file — a document
  24. file — a 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