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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. key — in music
  3. row — a line
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. cue — for pool
  6. mark — a grade
  7. root — of a plant
  8. key — for a lock
  9. root — the cause
  10. land — ground
  11. root — of a word
  12. cue — a signal
  13. key — the most important part
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. cue — a hint
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. mark — a trace
  22. row — to paddle
  23. land — a country
  24. land — to come down

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