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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. wind — moving air
  3. land — ground
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. wind — moving air
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. root — the cause
  9. court — of a king
  10. present — the time now
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. land — a country
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. root — of a plant
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. court — for sport
  18. root — of a word
  19. present — there
  20. present — a gift
  21. court — of law
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. bowl — a football final

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