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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. root — of a plant
  3. root — the cause
  4. root — of a word
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. squash — the sport
  7. stem — to come from
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. land — a country
  10. drill — the tool
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. land — to come down
  18. drill — army training
  19. stand — to bear
  20. land — ground
  21. squash — to crush
  22. drill — a practice
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. stem — a stem cell

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