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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: kid · tear · suit · drill · root · fall · tube · fork

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. fall — to drop
  3. drill — a practice
  4. tear — to rip
  5. drill — army training
  6. kid — to tease
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. tube — the underground
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. tear — from crying
  11. fork — in a road
  12. tear — from crying
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. suit — clothes
  15. tube — a container
  16. fall — to drop
  17. suit — to fit
  18. fall — the season
  19. drill — the tool
  20. root — the cause
  21. kid — child
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. suit — in cards
  24. root — of a plant

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