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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 120 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: root · snap · tube · race · pop · hand · foot · bark

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. race — the arms race
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. hand — help
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. foot — a measure
  8. hand — in cards
  9. pop — to visit
  10. root — of a word
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. root — the cause
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. tube — a container
  17. snap — to click
  18. bark — to shout
  19. race — humankind
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. root — of a plant
  22. tube — the underground
  23. race — a contest
  24. pop — music

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