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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. land — ground
  4. game — wild animals
  5. cue — for pool
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. root — of a plant
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. deal — to handle
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. root — of a word
  13. game — a match
  14. hand — in cards
  15. spell — letters
  16. hand — help
  17. root — the cause
  18. spell — magic
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. spell — a short time
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. land — to come down
  23. cue — a signal
  24. land — a country

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