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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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. root — of a plant
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. pound — a weight
  6. cap — a hat
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. fork — in a road
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. game — a match
  11. cap — of ice
  12. root — the cause
  13. perch — the fish
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. cold — an illness
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. rule — government
  18. rule — a law
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. game — wild animals
  21. root — of a word
  22. cold — not warm
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cap — a lid

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