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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. root — the cause
  3. capital — money
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. capital — a city
  7. stem — to come from
  8. wind — moving air
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. track — a path
  12. wind — moving air
  13. pass — a permit
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. track — a song
  17. root — of a plant
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. track — to keep track
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. root — of a word
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. wind — to turn a key

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