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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. root — of a plant
  4. spell — a short time
  5. row — a line
  6. spell — magic
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. rest — a break
  9. bore — to drill
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. field — for sport
  13. row — to paddle
  14. field — a subject
  15. rest — what's left
  16. root — the cause
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. root — of a word
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. rest — what's left
  21. wake — a trail
  22. spell — letters
  23. bore — to tire
  24. field — farmland

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