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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
468
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: nail · root · bass · cold · patient · pitcher · game · bark

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. game — wild animals
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. root — the cause
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. root — of a plant
  8. bass — low music
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. bass — the fish
  14. cold — not warm
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. cold — an illness
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. bark — to shout
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. root — of a word
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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