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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. root — of a plant
  3. row — a line
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. snap — to click
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. root — the cause
  9. mark — a trace
  10. can — a tin
  11. root — of a word
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. roll — a list
  14. row — to paddle
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. roll — a cake
  18. can — to be able to
  19. mark — a grade
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. wound — an injury
  24. can — a tin

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