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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. fall — the season
  5. fall — to drop
  6. mine — for digging
  7. can — a tin
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spring — of water
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. can — a tin
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. wake — a trail
  16. can — to be able to
  17. hand — in cards
  18. spring — the season
  19. fall — to drop
  20. wax — to grow
  21. root — the cause
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. root — of a plant
  24. hand — help

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