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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. wind — moving air
  3. face — to confront
  4. root — of a plant
  5. wind — moving air
  6. root — of a word
  7. face — to point toward
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. rush — hurry
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. face — part of the head
  16. pitch — completely
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. root — the cause
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. band — a music group
  23. band — a ring
  24. chair — a leader

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