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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 · snap · pound · rest · bowl · root · game · face

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. kid — to tease
  3. rest — what's left
  4. game — a match
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. pound — a weight
  9. kid — child
  10. root — of a plant
  11. face — to point toward
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. face — to confront
  15. rest — a break
  16. root — the cause
  17. root — of a word
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. face — part of the head
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. game — wild animals
  23. snap — to click
  24. game — a kind of play

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