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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. root — of a word
  3. chest — of your body
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. tube — a container
  6. field — farmland
  7. clip — a video
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. root — the cause
  10. chest — a box
  11. chest — of your body
  12. rule — government
  13. swing — to play on
  14. swing — in golf
  15. clip — to cut
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. tube — the underground
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. field — for sport
  20. root — of a plant
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. clip — for paper
  23. field — a subject
  24. rule — a law

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