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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: safe · wind · last · root · content · hand · bat · swing

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. swing — in golf
  3. root — of a word
  4. swing — music
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. last — final
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. hand — help
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. bat — the animal
  14. swing — to play on
  15. wind — moving air
  16. root — the cause
  17. content — happy
  18. hand — in cards
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. content — the amount
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. root — of a plant
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. last — finally

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