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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. key — in music
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. root — of a plant
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. wind — moving air
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. root — the cause
  12. wind — moving air
  13. band — a ring
  14. key — the most important part
  15. key — for a lock
  16. sharp — clever
  17. dip — to sink
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. root — of a word
  20. band — a music group
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. band — a rubber band

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