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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: game · chest · pound · root · face · nail · deal · wake

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. root — of a plant
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. wake — a trail
  7. deal — to handle
  8. face — to confront
  9. face — to point toward
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. root — the cause
  13. chest — a box
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. root — of a word
  17. chest — of your body
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. face — part of the head
  20. game — wild animals
  21. chest — of your body
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. pound — a weight
  24. game — a match

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