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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. root — the cause
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. pop — soda
  6. prune — to trim
  7. pop — to visit
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. drill — the tool
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — moving air
  12. root — of a word
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. row — to paddle
  15. prune — to trim
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. root — of a plant
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. drill — a practice
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. row — a line
  22. drill — army training
  23. pop — music
  24. row — a quarrel

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