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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 120 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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Word bank
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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: root · foot · present · nail · squash · bat · deal · pop

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. pop — to visit
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. pop — music
  7. root — of a plant
  8. deal — to handle
  9. foot — a measure
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. present — a gift
  12. pop — soda
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. root — of a word
  16. bat — the animal
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. present — there
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. root — the cause
  22. squash — to crush
  23. present — the time now
  24. nail — on a finger

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