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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. pound — a weight
  3. kid — child
  4. staff — employees
  5. root — of a word
  6. last — finally
  7. staff — a stick
  8. last — final
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. tear — from crying
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. root — the cause
  13. root — of a plant
  14. lean — to bend
  15. staff — employees
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. tear — from crying
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. last — to go on
  20. lean — thin
  21. game — a match
  22. kid — to tease
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. game — wild animals

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