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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. rash — hasty
  3. pop — to visit
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. ground — crushed
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. root — of a word
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. root — of a plant
  10. ground — the earth
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. ground — a position
  13. mine — for digging
  14. pop — soda
  15. press — to push
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. staff — a stick
  18. pop — music
  19. staff — employees
  20. press — a publisher
  21. staff — employees
  22. root — the cause
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. press — newspapers

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