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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: squash · date · game · pound · root · snap

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. game — a match
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. squash — to crush
  7. squash — the sport
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. pound — a weight
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. game — wild animals
  14. snap — to click
  15. root — of a plant
  16. root — the cause
  17. root — of a word
  18. date — the fruit

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