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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 120 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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. chest — a box
  3. dip — to sink
  4. root — of a word
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. chest — of your body
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. spring — of water
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. chest — of your body
  13. spring — a coil
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. spring — the season
  16. root — the cause
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. root — of a plant
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — the tool
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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