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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 116 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: squash · bear · bat · root · tube · game · vault · pit

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. pit — a hole
  4. game — wild animals
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. tube — the underground
  9. vault — a safe
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. tube — a container
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — the animal
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. squash — to crush
  16. root — of a word
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. pit — in a race
  20. root — of a plant
  21. root — the cause
  22. bat — the animal
  23. game — a match
  24. squash — the sport

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