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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: snap · bore · straw · band · root · capital · roll · cue

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. roll — a cake
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. cue — a signal
  6. cue — a hint
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. cue — for pool
  9. bore — to drill
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. root — of a plant
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a city
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. root — the cause
  16. bore — to tire
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. band — a music group
  19. root — of a word
  20. snap — to click
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. band — a ring
  24. roll — a list

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