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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. pop — to visit
  4. sharp — clever
  5. root — of a plant
  6. wake — a trail
  7. field — a subject
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. pop — music
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. pop — soda
  15. root — the cause
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. field — for sport
  19. can — a tin
  20. field — farmland
  21. can — a tin
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. root — of a word
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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