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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 like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. band — a music group
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. can — to be able to
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. can — a tin
  11. kick — in football
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. can — a tin
  17. wound — an injury
  18. root — of a word
  19. root — the cause
  20. wound — an injury
  21. band — a ring
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. root — of a plant
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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