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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. plane — a tool
  4. kick — in football
  5. root — the cause
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. root — of a word
  12. game — a match
  13. club — a group
  14. club — for dancing
  15. bark — to shout
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. dip — to sink
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. root — of a plant
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. club — for golf
  23. game — wild animals
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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