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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 president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. root — of a word
  3. fall — the season
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — a phone
  8. stock — goods
  9. root — of a plant
  10. game — a match
  11. game — wild animals
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. stock — shares
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. fall — to drop
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. cell — in biology
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. root — the cause
  22. fall — to drop
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. squash — the sport

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