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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. root — of a word
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. wind — moving air
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. root — the cause
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. staff — a stick
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. vault — a safe
  15. staff — employees
  16. wind — moving air
  17. staff — employees
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. mine — for digging
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. root — of a plant
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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