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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. ball — a great time
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. tear — from crying
  5. last — finally
  6. land — ground
  7. last — final
  8. tear — to rip
  9. land — a country
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. fork — in a road
  12. ball — a dance
  13. root — of a plant
  14. hand — help
  15. spell — magic
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. land — to come down
  18. root — the cause
  19. root — of a word
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. last — to go on
  22. tear — from crying
  23. spell — letters
  24. spell — a short time

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