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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: pound · root · wind · pitcher · fork · snap · rash · club

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. club — a group
  4. snap — to click
  5. club — for golf
  6. rash — hasty
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. rash — a series
  9. wind — moving air
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. club — for dancing
  12. root — of a plant
  13. wind — moving air
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. fork — in a road
  21. root — the cause
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. pound — a weight
  24. pound — for dogs

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