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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. root — of a plant
  5. wake — a trail
  6. capital — a city
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. hand — help
  12. root — the cause
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. hand — in cards
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. capital — money
  18. game — wild animals
  19. bank — for money
  20. bank — for money
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. game — a match
  23. root — of a word
  24. trunk — of a tree

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