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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. root — of a plant
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. content — the amount
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. root — of a word
  7. chip — to eat
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. perch — the fish
  10. chip — for betting
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. content — happy
  13. root — the cause
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. perch — for a bird

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