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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. root — the cause
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. root — of a plant
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. root — of a word
  7. pound — a weight
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. spring — of water
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. game — wild animals
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. spring — a coil
  17. snap — to click
  18. spring — the season
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. hand — help
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. fork — in a road
  24. game — a match

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