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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. root — of a plant
  3. wind — moving air
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. cold — not warm
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. cold — an illness
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. wind — moving air
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. vault — a safe
  16. root — of a word
  17. ground — crushed
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. ground — a position
  23. ground — the earth
  24. root — the cause

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