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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 · drill · cell · foot · pound · date · fine · root

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. drill — a practice
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. pound — a weight
  8. foot — a measure
  9. drill — army training
  10. date — the fruit
  11. fine — all right
  12. cell — a phone
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. root — of a plant
  15. snap — to click
  16. cell — in biology
  17. fine — high quality
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. root — of a word
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. drill — the tool
  24. root — the cause

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