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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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. drill — the tool
  3. mug — a cup
  4. kid — to tease
  5. wake — a trail
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. root — of a word
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. root — of a plant
  10. bear — the animal
  11. hand — in cards
  12. drill — army training
  13. bear — the animal
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. sharp — clever
  16. mug — a face
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. mug — to rob
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. drill — a practice
  21. root — the cause
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. hand — help

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