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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. root — the cause
  3. charge — electricity
  4. shower — to wash
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. ball — a great time
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. root — of a word
  10. charge — in control
  11. root — of a plant
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. charge — a price
  14. lie — to recline
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. shower — rain
  19. ball — a dance
  20. game — a match
  21. game — wild animals
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. ball — a round shape

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