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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: wound · racket · wind · root · rest · fall · saw · board

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. root — of a word
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. root — of a plant
  5. saw — the tool
  6. wind — moving air
  7. rest — what's left
  8. wind — moving air
  9. board — a committee
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. board — to get on
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — a break
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fall — to drop
  20. root — the cause
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. fall — the season
  23. wound — an injury
  24. racket — a loud noise

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