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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.

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: straw · root · ball · cell · chest · rush · last · pop

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. root — of a plant
  3. last — final
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. cell — in biology
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. pop — soda
  9. cell — a phone
  10. ball — a dance
  11. pop — to visit
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. rush — hurry
  14. chest — of your body
  15. last — finally
  16. chest — a box
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. pop — music
  19. root — of a word
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. ball — a great time
  22. root — the cause
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. chest — of your body

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