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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: leaves · hand · file · root · arm · mark · snap · bass

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. root — of a plant
  6. hand — in cards
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — help
  9. bass — the fish
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. bass — low music
  12. file — a line of people
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. mark — a grade
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. root — of a word
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. root — the cause
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. file — a tool
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. file — a document
  24. mark — a trace

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