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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. rash — a series
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bat — the animal
  5. pit — a hole
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. root — the cause
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. cap — a hat
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. cap — of ice
  12. cue — a hint
  13. shower — to wash
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. pit — in a race
  16. wind — moving air
  17. root — of a plant
  18. rash — hasty
  19. cue — for pool
  20. cap — a lid
  21. cue — a signal
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. shower — rain
  24. bat — in an idiom

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