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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 124 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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. ground — crushed
  4. kid — to tease
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. root — of a plant
  7. root — of a word
  8. pound — a weight
  9. ground — a position
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. pass — a permit
  13. ball — a dance
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. ball — a great time
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. root — the cause
  20. bark — to shout
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. kid — child
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. pass — to succeed

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