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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: march · chest · root · rock · chip · cap · cell · mug

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. chest — of your body
  4. cap — of ice
  5. cell — in biology
  6. cell — a phone
  7. root — of a word
  8. mug — a face
  9. chest — of your body
  10. cap — a lid
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. march — music
  13. root — the cause
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. march — the month
  16. mug — a cup
  17. cap — a hat
  18. chip — for betting
  19. march — the month
  20. chest — a box
  21. chip — to eat
  22. rock — a stone
  23. root — of a plant
  24. mug — to rob

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