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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 116 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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. snap — to click
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. land — a country
  5. root — the cause
  6. root — of a plant
  7. root — of a word
  8. net — in sport
  9. mark — a grade
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. present — there
  12. net — for catching
  13. net — after costs
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. land — to come down
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. mark — a trace
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. present — the time now
  22. land — ground
  23. present — a gift
  24. bat — in an idiom

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