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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 120 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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. key — in music
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. root — the cause
  5. suit — to fit
  6. wind — moving air
  7. prune — to trim
  8. root — of a word
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. suit — in cards
  12. suit — clothes
  13. prune — to trim
  14. key — for a lock
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. drill — the tool
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. drill — army training
  21. root — of a plant
  22. drill — a practice
  23. key — the most important part
  24. bowl — to roll

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