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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 120 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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468
Word bank
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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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. plane — a tool
  3. spring — of water
  4. pitch — completely
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. wind — moving air
  7. spring — the season
  8. perch — the fish
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. spring — a coil
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wax — to grow
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. root — the cause
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. root — of a plant
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. kick — in football
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. root — of a word
  24. perch — for a bird

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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