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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. spell — magic
  3. ground — crushed
  4. pop — music
  5. root — of a plant
  6. mark — a grade
  7. ground — a position
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. fork — in a road
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. spell — letters
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. root — of a word
  16. pop — soda
  17. mark — a trace
  18. spell — a short time
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. ground — the earth
  21. root — the cause
  22. sharp — clever
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. mark — to pay attention

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