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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  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. can — to be able to
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. can — a tin
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. root — of a plant
  11. root — of a word
  12. can — a tin
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. fork — in a road
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. foot — a measure
  23. foot — part of the body
  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