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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 120 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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. dip — to sink
  3. pop — soda
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. row — a line
  12. row — to paddle
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. root — of a word
  15. band — a music group
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. rush — hurry
  19. root — the cause
  20. band — a ring
  21. fork — in a road
  22. root — of a plant
  23. pop — music
  24. row — a quarrel

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