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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: tube · straw · chair · season · field · dip · root · fall

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. season — of the year
  3. root — the cause
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. tube — a container
  6. dip — to sink
  7. fall — the season
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. chair — a leader
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. field — farmland
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — to drop
  14. field — for sport
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. tube — the underground
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. root — of a plant
  21. field — a subject
  22. season — in sport
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. tube — in a tire

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