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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 120 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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. drill — army training
  4. root — of a word
  5. shower — to wash
  6. root — the cause
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. fork — in a road
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. spell — letters
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. shower — rain
  13. bark — to shout
  14. drill — the tool
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. drill — a practice
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. sharp — clever
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. root — of a plant
  23. spell — magic
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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