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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. net — after costs
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. root — of a word
  7. squash — the sport
  8. plane — a tool
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. fork — in a road
  11. root — the cause
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. staff — employees
  14. squash — to crush
  15. wind — moving air
  16. staff — a stick
  17. net — in sport
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. root — of a plant
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. stem — to come from
  22. wind — moving air
  23. staff — employees
  24. stem — of a plant

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