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

Word bank: cold · pitcher · wake · wind · rule · root · chip · band

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. root — of a plant
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. chip — to eat
  5. band — a ring
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. wake — a trail
  8. root — the cause
  9. band — a music group
  10. cold — not warm
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. cold — an illness
  13. chip — for betting
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. rule — government
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. rule — a law
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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