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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: press · root · cell · chest · leaves · craft · race · court

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. root — of a plant
  3. chest — of your body
  4. craft — boats
  5. chest — a box
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. race — humankind
  9. court — of a king
  10. chest — of your body
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. court — of law
  13. race — a contest
  14. race — the arms race
  15. press — a publisher
  16. court — for sport
  17. root — the cause
  18. press — to push
  19. cell — in biology
  20. press — newspapers
  21. cell — a phone
  22. craft — a skill
  23. root — of a word
  24. cell — in a prison

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