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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: degree · land · bark · bear · snap · club · root · cue

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. club — for dancing
  3. snap — to click
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. bear — the animal
  8. root — of a word
  9. cue — for pool
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. cue — a signal
  12. degree — temperature
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. root — the cause
  15. land — a country
  16. bark — to shout
  17. club — a group
  18. degree — an amount
  19. degree — from a university
  20. root — of a plant
  21. club — for golf
  22. land — to come down
  23. cue — a hint
  24. land — ground

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