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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. root — the cause
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. root — of a plant
  7. field — for sport
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. cap — a hat
  10. club — for dancing
  11. wake — a trail
  12. field — a subject
  13. fall — the season
  14. club — for golf
  15. club — a group
  16. cap — a lid
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. field — farmland
  20. wind — moving air
  21. cap — of ice
  22. root — of a word
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fall — to drop

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