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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: toast · cell · tube · staff · march · root · chest · perch

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. chest — of your body
  3. tube — the underground
  4. cell — a phone
  5. root — the cause
  6. staff — employees
  7. march — the month
  8. march — the month
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. staff — employees
  12. cell — in biology
  13. tube — a container
  14. chest — a box
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. chest — of your body
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. staff — a stick
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. root — of a plant
  21. toast — bread
  22. perch — the fish
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. root — of a word

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