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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. hand — help
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. root — of a plant
  6. chest — of your body
  7. bore — to tire
  8. can — to be able to
  9. root — of a word
  10. game — wild animals
  11. hand — in cards
  12. tube — the underground
  13. pound — a weight
  14. tube — a container
  15. root — the cause
  16. can — a tin
  17. can — a tin
  18. bore — to drill
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. chest — a box
  22. game — a match
  23. chest — of your body
  24. tube — in a tire

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