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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. wind — moving air
  4. root — of a word
  5. perch — the fish
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. root — of a plant
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. bound — obliged
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. fine — high quality
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. root — the cause
  17. bound — certain
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bound — tied together
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. wind — moving air

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