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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: hand · safe · root · wake · ground · rash · key · net

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. ground — a position
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. key — the most important part
  5. net — for catching
  6. root — of a plant
  7. net — after costs
  8. ground — the earth
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. root — of a word
  11. key — in music
  12. hand — help
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. ground — crushed
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. root — the cause
  19. rash — a series
  20. hand — in cards
  21. key — for a lock
  22. net — in sport
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. wake — a trail

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