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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. face — part of the head
  3. face — to confront
  4. root — of a word
  5. root — the cause
  6. chest — of your body
  7. staff — a stick
  8. staff — employees
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. face — to point toward
  11. chest — a box
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. fork — in a road
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. chest — of your body
  22. staff — employees
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. root — of a plant

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