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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: straw · root · rock · fan · swing · race · saw · hand

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. root — of a word
  3. race — a contest
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. swing — to play on
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. saw — the tool
  9. rock — a stone
  10. root — the cause
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. swing — music
  15. race — humankind
  16. rock — music
  17. root — of a plant
  18. swing — in golf
  19. hand — in cards
  20. hand — help
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. race — the arms race
  23. saw — the tool
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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