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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 116 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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. rest — a break
  3. wind — moving air
  4. ground — a position
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. root — of a plant
  8. can — to be able to
  9. rule — a law
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. rule — government
  13. rest — what's left
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ground — the earth
  17. rest — what's left
  18. can — a tin
  19. can — a tin
  20. mine — for digging
  21. root — the cause
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. root — of a word
  24. sharp — clever

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