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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. staff — employees
  5. wind — moving air
  6. root — of a plant
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. track — a path
  9. track — a song
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. bat — the animal
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. root — the cause
  16. staff — employees
  17. root — of a word
  18. sharp — clever
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. track — to keep track
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. staff — a stick

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