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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. land — ground
  3. squash — to crush
  4. root — of a word
  5. land — to come down
  6. bass — low music
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. squash — the sport
  10. hand — help
  11. ball — a great time
  12. bass — the fish
  13. lie — to recline
  14. shower — to wash
  15. shower — rain
  16. ball — a dance
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. land — a country
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. root — the cause
  22. root — of a plant
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. lie — an untruth

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