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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. clip — a video
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. drill — a practice
  9. bore — to drill
  10. wind — moving air
  11. root — the cause
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. drill — army training
  14. root — of a plant
  15. clip — for paper
  16. tube — the underground
  17. clip — to cut
  18. tube — a container
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. bore — to tire
  22. drill — the tool
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. safe — out of danger

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