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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. shower — rain
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. root — of a plant
  6. chest — of your body
  7. shower — to wash
  8. root — of a word
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. chest — a box
  11. chest — of your body
  12. mark — a trace
  13. court — for sport
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. game — wild animals
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. mark — a grade
  19. kid — to tease
  20. kid — child
  21. court — of a king
  22. court — of law
  23. root — the cause
  24. deal — to handle

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