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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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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of law
  4. root — of a plant
  5. swing — music
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — moving air
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. root — of a word
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. root — the cause
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. swing — in golf
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. court — of a king
  24. fork — in a road

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