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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
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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: straw · snap · bark · root · jam · tube · hand · land

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. tube — the underground
  3. bark — to shout
  4. root — of a plant
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. land — a country
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. root — the cause
  11. tube — a container
  12. hand — in cards
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. land — ground
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. snap — to click
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. root — of a word
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. hand — help
  24. jam — in traffic

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