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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 124 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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468
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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. tube — a container
  4. march — music
  5. cell — a phone
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. cap — of ice
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. march — the month
  10. root — of a plant
  11. tube — the underground
  12. root — of a word
  13. march — the month
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. pit — in a race
  17. kick — in football
  18. root — the cause
  19. pit — a hole
  20. cap — a hat
  21. cap — a lid
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — in biology
  24. bark — to shout

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