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

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. root — of a word
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. field — farmland
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. season — of the year
  10. pound — a weight
  11. field — for sport
  12. foot — a measure
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. deal — to handle
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. season — in sport
  21. root — of a plant
  22. root — the cause
  23. field — a subject
  24. pound — for dogs

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