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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. board — a committee
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. wake — a trail
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. spell — magic
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. root — of a word
  10. spell — letters
  11. wind — moving air
  12. charge — in control
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. charge — electricity
  15. root — the cause
  16. field — farmland
  17. wind — moving air
  18. field — a subject
  19. root — of a plant
  20. board — to get on
  21. charge — a price
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. spell — a short time

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