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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: stick · roll · rash · root · spring · snap · bass · fork

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. root — the cause
  3. spring — of water
  4. spring — a coil
  5. roll — a cake
  6. rash — hasty
  7. bass — low music
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. spring — the season
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. root — of a word
  13. root — of a plant
  14. bass — the fish
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. rash — a series
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. fork — in a road
  21. snap — to click
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. roll — a list
  24. bass — the instrument

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