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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: trunk · pitch · pass · root · chest · kid · cold · nail

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. cold — not warm
  3. chest — a box
  4. pitch — completely
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. kid — child
  7. chest — of your body
  8. pass — a permit
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. chest — of your body
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. root — the cause
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. kid — to tease
  23. root — of a word
  24. cold — an illness

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