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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. tear — from crying
  3. wind — moving air
  4. toast — bread
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. wind — moving air
  9. tear — from crying
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. press — newspapers
  14. press — a publisher
  15. root — of a plant
  16. tear — to rip
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. capital — a city
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. root — the cause
  21. press — to push
  22. capital — money
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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