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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. bark — to shout
  4. hand — in cards
  5. pop — music
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. present — the time now
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. hand — help
  14. chip — to eat
  15. pop — soda
  16. pop — to visit
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. chip — for betting
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. present — there
  22. root — of a plant
  23. root — of a word
  24. root — the cause

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