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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: cold · tear · current · kick · firm · pitch · roll · root

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. pitch — completely
  3. kick — in football
  4. cold — an illness
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. tear — to rip
  7. firm — a company
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. current — happening now
  11. root — the cause
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. tear — from crying
  14. current — electric
  15. root — of a plant
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. firm — steady
  18. cold — not warm
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. firm — decided
  21. tear — from crying
  22. roll — a list
  23. root — of a word
  24. current — of water

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