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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: tube · wave · root · present · chest · snap · bat · object

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. snap — to click
  3. root — the cause
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. object — to protest
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. present — a gift
  10. chest — a box
  11. tube — a container
  12. root — of a word
  13. present — there
  14. object — a thing
  15. root — of a plant
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. chest — of your body
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. tube — the underground
  20. chest — of your body
  21. object — an aim
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bat — the animal

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