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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. hand — in cards
  3. ball — a great time
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. ball — a dance
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. bark — to shout
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. hand — help
  15. branch — a division
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. content — the amount
  22. root — the cause
  23. content — happy
  24. root — of a plant

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