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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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. hand — help
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. root — of a word
  5. drill — the tool
  6. hand — in cards
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. stand — to bear
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. cap — a hat
  11. root — of a plant
  12. drill — army training
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. dip — to sink
  15. wound — an injury
  16. drill — a practice
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. cap — of ice
  22. wound — an injury
  23. root — the cause
  24. cap — a lid

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