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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. wind — moving air
  3. root — the cause
  4. ground — crushed
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. chest — of your body
  7. root — of a plant
  8. mug — to rob
  9. chest — a box
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. race — a contest
  12. chest — of your body
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. mug — a cup
  15. pit — a hole
  16. ground — the earth
  17. wind — moving air
  18. band — a ring
  19. race — the arms race
  20. pit — in a race
  21. race — humankind
  22. ground — a position
  23. mug — a face
  24. band — a music group

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