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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. spell — magic
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. root — of a plant
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. bound — certain
  8. spell — letters
  9. bound — obliged
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. root — the cause
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. dip — to sink
  15. row — to paddle
  16. bark — to shout
  17. row — a line
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. wake — a trail
  20. bound — tied together
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. spell — a short time
  23. kick — in football
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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