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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 120 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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. bear — the animal
  3. foot — a measure
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. root — of a word
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. ground — a position
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. bear — the animal
  16. root — the cause
  17. game — wild animals
  18. dip — to sink
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. ground — the earth
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. root — of a plant
  24. ground — crushed

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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