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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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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: kid · nail · root · stick · spell · club · pound · staff

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. staff — employees
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. club — for dancing
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. club — for golf
  11. staff — a stick
  12. spell — letters
  13. root — the cause
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. root — of a word
  16. staff — employees
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. spell — a short time
  19. root — of a plant
  20. pound — a weight
  21. club — a group
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. kid — child
  24. spell — magic

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