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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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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 the members were all out of tune.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. rest — what's left
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. rest — what's left
  6. clip — to cut
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. rush — hurry
  9. clip — for paper
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. row — a line
  18. root — of a word
  19. clip — a video
  20. root — of a plant
  21. row — to paddle
  22. rest — a break
  23. root — the cause
  24. rush — to hurry

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