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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 116 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 walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. present — there
  3. root — of a word
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. present — a gift
  6. deal — to handle
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — help
  9. spell — a short time
  10. hand — in cards
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. spell — magic
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. spell — letters
  16. root — the cause
  17. capital — a city
  18. root — of a plant
  19. present — the time now
  20. capital — money
  21. file — a tool
  22. file — a document
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. racket — a loud noise

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