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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. lean — thin
  3. root — of a plant
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. pound — a weight
  7. bank — for money
  8. dip — to sink
  9. bank — for money
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. root — of a word
  12. drill — the tool
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. lean — to bend
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. drill — a practice
  17. cell — a phone
  18. root — the cause
  19. cell — in biology
  20. file — a line of people
  21. file — a tool
  22. bank — of a river
  23. file — a document
  24. pound — to hit hard

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