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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. hand — help
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. root — the cause
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. last — to go on
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. chair — a leader
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. last — finally
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. root — of a plant
  15. last — final
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — in cards
  18. 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