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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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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. ground — crushed
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. ground — the earth
  6. bat — the animal
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. swing — in golf
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. ground — a position
  13. rash — hasty
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. rash — a series
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. root — of a word
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. root — of a plant
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. swing — music
  24. swing — to play on

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