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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 116 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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — to tease
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. net — after costs
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. bass — low music
  12. rush — hurry
  13. bass — the fish
  14. root — of a word
  15. pitch — completely
  16. root — of a plant
  17. net — for catching
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. net — in sport
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. bark — to shout
  24. root — the cause

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