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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: trunk · wake · bound · mouse · pitcher · pit · date · root

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. bound — certain
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. date — the fruit
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. root — the cause
  8. root — of a word
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. bound — obliged
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. pit — in a race
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. root — of a plant
  19. bound — tied together
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. wake — a trail

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