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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 a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. mark — a trace
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. hand — help
  5. club — a group
  6. kid — child
  7. file — a line of people
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. hand — in cards
  10. root — the cause
  11. snap — to click
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. mark — a grade
  16. club — for golf
  17. club — for dancing
  18. file — a document
  19. vault — a safe
  20. root — of a word
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. kid — to tease
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. file — a tool

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