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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 sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. face — part of the head
  3. root — of a plant
  4. firm — steady
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. face — to confront
  7. root — of a word
  8. firm — a company
  9. bass — low music
  10. march — the month
  11. firm — decided
  12. root — the cause
  13. bass — the fish
  14. saw — the tool
  15. march — the month
  16. wind — moving air
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. wind — moving air
  19. march — music
  20. face — to point toward
  21. capital — a city
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. capital — money
  24. saw — the tool

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