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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. staff — employees
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. bank — for money
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. court — of law
  9. clip — to cut
  10. root — of a plant
  11. court — for sport
  12. root — the cause
  13. press — newspapers
  14. press — to push
  15. bank — for money
  16. bank — of a river
  17. press — a publisher
  18. clip — a video
  19. pound — a weight
  20. clip — for paper
  21. staff — employees
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. staff — a stick
  24. court — of a king

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