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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. mark — a grade
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. root — the cause
  9. wind — moving air
  10. prune — to trim
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. wake — a trail
  17. root — of a word
  18. mark — a trace
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. prune — to trim
  21. branch — a division
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. root — of a plant

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