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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: content · craft · swing · roll · root · bark · capital · tear

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. root — of a plant
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. capital — money
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. craft — a skill
  7. root — the cause
  8. roll — a cake
  9. tear — to rip
  10. swing — music
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. swing — in golf
  13. capital — a city
  14. roll — a list
  15. swing — to play on
  16. content — happy
  17. tear — from crying
  18. craft — boats
  19. tear — from crying
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. bark — to shout
  24. content — the amount

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