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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 belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. rock — music
  3. club — for golf
  4. root — of a plant
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. snap — to click
  8. bark — to shout
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. can — a tin
  12. sharp — clever
  13. root — the cause
  14. can — to be able to
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. can — a tin
  18. root — of a word
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. club — for dancing
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. rock — a stone
  24. arm — a part of something

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