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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 120 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wind — moving air
  4. spring — of water
  5. root — of a plant
  6. spring — the season
  7. charge — electricity
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. charge — in control
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. land — to come down
  12. charge — a price
  13. cold — an illness
  14. land — a country
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. root — of a word
  18. bat — the animal
  19. land — ground
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. cold — not warm
  22. wind — moving air
  23. spring — a coil
  24. root — the cause

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