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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 took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. club — a group
  3. race — humankind
  4. rush — hurry
  5. root — the cause
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. root — of a word
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. spring — the season
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. race — a contest
  13. net — after costs
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. club — for dancing
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. club — for golf
  19. spring — a coil
  20. root — of a plant
  21. spring — of water
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. net — in sport
  24. race — the arms race

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