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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. game — a match
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. drill — the tool
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. drill — army training
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. drill — a practice
  11. roll — a list
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. root — of a plant
  14. root — the cause
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. plane — a tool
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. game — wild animals
  21. root — of a word
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. kick — in football

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