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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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. rash — hasty
  3. hand — help
  4. club — for golf
  5. club — for dancing
  6. tear — from crying
  7. hand — in cards
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. tear — from crying
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. root — of a plant
  12. tear — to rip
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. squash — the sport
  15. deal — to handle
  16. root — the cause
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. club — a group
  19. rock — music
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. squash — to crush
  22. root — of a word
  23. rock — a stone
  24. deal — an agreement

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