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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. root — the cause
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. game — a match
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. degree — from a university
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. root — of a plant
  13. root — of a word
  14. degree — temperature
  15. degree — an amount
  16. can — a tin
  17. bark — to shout
  18. snap — to click
  19. can — a tin
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. game — wild animals
  22. can — to be able to
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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