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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: chest · kick · band · fine · jam · roll · fall · root

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. root — of a word
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. chest — a box
  5. fall — the season
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. chest — of your body
  8. root — the cause
  9. fine — all right
  10. band — a music group
  11. fall — to drop
  12. band — a ring
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. kick — in football
  16. roll — a cake
  17. fine — high quality
  18. chest — of your body
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. root — of a plant
  21. roll — a list
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. kick — with a leg

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