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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: rash · root · field · ruler · swing · chest · land · kid

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. field — a subject
  4. swing — music
  5. field — for sport
  6. rash — hasty
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. swing — in golf
  10. land — to come down
  11. land — ground
  12. chest — of your body
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. kid — child
  16. chest — a box
  17. field — farmland
  18. swing — to play on
  19. land — a country
  20. rash — a series
  21. root — of a plant
  22. chest — of your body
  23. root — the cause
  24. kid — to tease

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