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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. ground — the earth
  3. pitch — completely
  4. wind — moving air
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. saw — the tool
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. root — the cause
  9. wind — moving air
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. ground — a position
  16. ground — crushed
  17. root — of a plant
  18. saw — the tool
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. game — wild animals
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. game — a match
  24. root — of a word

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