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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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. root — of a word
  3. squash — to crush
  4. chest — a box
  5. drill — the tool
  6. root — the cause
  7. chest — of your body
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — to tease
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. scale — in music
  13. spring — of water
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. kid — child
  16. chest — of your body
  17. spring — a coil
  18. root — of a plant
  19. scale — size or range
  20. squash — the sport
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. drill — a practice
  23. drill — army training
  24. spring — the season

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