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

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  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. coach — a trainer
  2. row — a line
  3. game — wild animals
  4. row — to paddle
  5. wind — moving air
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. wake — a trail
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. ground — a position
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. root — the cause
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. ground — crushed
  17. root — of a plant
  18. game — a match
  19. root — of a word
  20. ground — the earth
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. bowl — to roll
  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