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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. root — the cause
  3. rash — a series
  4. present — the time now
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. swing — in golf
  8. present — a gift
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. race — a contest
  11. rash — hasty
  12. face — part of the head
  13. face — to point toward
  14. swing — to play on
  15. present — there
  16. wind — moving air
  17. prune — to trim
  18. root — of a plant
  19. root — of a word
  20. wind — moving air
  21. race — humankind
  22. race — the arms race
  23. prune — to trim
  24. swing — music

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