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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  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. pop — music
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. pop — soda
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. pop — to visit
  6. root — of a word
  7. hand — help
  8. scale — in music
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. hand — in cards
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. root — of a plant
  20. scale — size or range
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. capital — money
  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