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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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Word bank
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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: pitcher · bark · cabinet · mug · tube · season · cold · root

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. root — the cause
  6. tube — a container
  7. season — of the year
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. root — of a word
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. mug — a face
  13. cold — an illness
  14. tube — the underground
  15. season — in sport
  16. cold — not warm
  17. root — of a plant
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. mug — to rob
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. bark — to shout
  24. mug — a cup

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