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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. march — the month
  3. squash — to crush
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. root — of a word
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. capital — money
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. lean — to bend
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. root — the cause
  12. clip — for paper
  13. lean — thin
  14. march — music
  15. clip — a video
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. root — of a plant
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. clip — to cut
  20. capital — a city
  21. wind — moving air
  22. squash — the sport
  23. wake — a trail
  24. march — the month

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