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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: cap · perch · deal · wind · root · bat · field · wave

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — for sport
  4. wind — moving air
  5. bat — the animal
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. root — the cause
  8. root — of a word
  9. field — farmland
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. perch — the fish
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. cap — a lid
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. wind — moving air
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. cap — of ice
  21. deal — to handle
  22. cap — a hat
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. root — of a plant

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