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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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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: present · hand · band · chip · root · last · bear · sharp

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. root — the cause
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. last — to go on
  5. present — the time now
  6. root — of a word
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. present — there
  9. hand — help
  10. bear — the animal
  11. present — a gift
  12. last — final
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. last — finally
  15. bear — the animal
  16. hand — in cards
  17. chip — to eat
  18. band — a music group
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. chip — for betting
  22. band — a ring
  23. sharp — clever
  24. root — of a plant

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