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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bark — to shout
  5. root — the cause
  6. root — of a word
  7. face — to confront
  8. degree — from a university
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. root — of a plant
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. face — part of the head
  18. degree — temperature
  19. pitch — completely
  20. chip — for betting
  21. degree — an amount
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. face — to point toward

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