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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. hand — help
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. hand — in cards
  5. root — the cause
  6. bark — to shout
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. rock — music
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. band — a music group
  14. spring — of water
  15. drill — a practice
  16. band — a ring
  17. spring — a coil
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. root — of a plant
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. root — of a word
  22. spring — the season
  23. drill — the tool
  24. drill — army training

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