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

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  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. pit — a hole
  2. bear — the animal
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. root — the cause
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. bear — the animal
  12. shower — to wash
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. root — of a plant
  15. wind — moving air
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. wax — to grow
  18. shower — rain
  19. pit — in a race
  20. wind — moving air
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. root — of a word
  23. fan — a supporter
  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