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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. root — the cause
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. rest — what's left
  5. mate — a friend
  6. shower — to wash
  7. rest — a break
  8. root — of a word
  9. rest — what's left
  10. mate — a partner
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. root — of a plant
  18. mate — to breed
  19. shower — rain
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. kid — to tease
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. nail — for a hammer

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