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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: chest · bore · ground · snap · rule · root · rush · board

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. root — of a word
  3. chest — of your body
  4. ground — the earth
  5. rule — government
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. rule — a law
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. root — the cause
  11. root — of a plant
  12. board — a committee
  13. ground — a position
  14. chest — of your body
  15. snap — to click
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. ground — crushed
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. board — to get on
  21. bore — to tire
  22. chest — a box
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. bore — to drill

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