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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. root — of a plant
  3. net — in sport
  4. hand — help
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. spring — the season
  7. hand — in cards
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. root — the cause
  10. cap — a hat
  11. cap — of ice
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. root — of a word
  14. spring — of water
  15. season — in sport
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. net — for catching
  19. cap — a lid
  20. spring — a coil
  21. net — after costs
  22. wind — moving air
  23. season — of the year
  24. wind — moving air

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