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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: object · jam · wound · fork · root · foot · ground · hand

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. foot — a measure
  4. root — of a word
  5. root — of a plant
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. object — a thing
  9. ground — the earth
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. object — an aim
  12. root — the cause
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. hand — in cards
  15. fork — in a road
  16. object — to protest
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — an injury
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. ground — crushed
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. ground — a position
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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