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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 120 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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. root — of a plant
  3. root — the cause
  4. root — of a word
  5. wound — an injury
  6. squash — to crush
  7. clip — to cut
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. clip — a video
  10. land — ground
  11. land — a country
  12. perch — the fish
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. hand — help
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. squash — the sport
  20. land — to come down
  21. clip — for paper
  22. wound — an injury
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. perch — for a bird

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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