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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 116 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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. root — of a word
  3. kid — child
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. band — a ring
  6. kid — to tease
  7. root — the cause
  8. plane — a tool
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. drill — a practice
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. band — a music group
  14. drill — the tool
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. drill — army training
  18. game — wild animals
  19. game — a match
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. root — of a plant
  24. bark — to shout

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