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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. root — of a word
  5. wind — moving air
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. wind — moving air
  10. dip — to sink
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. roll — a list
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. roll — a cake
  15. root — the cause
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. wound — an injury
  18. content — the amount
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. wound — an injury
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. content — happy
  23. root — of a plant
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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