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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 ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. charge — a price
  3. fall — to drop
  4. charge — in control
  5. root — of a word
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. fall — the season
  10. charge — electricity
  11. prune — to trim
  12. fall — to drop
  13. shower — rain
  14. root — the cause
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. wind — moving air
  17. shower — to wash
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. face — to confront
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. prune — to trim
  22. wind — moving air
  23. face — to point toward
  24. face — part of the head

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