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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: club · hand · prune · row · root · bound · bowl · wind

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. club — a group
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. prune — to trim
  5. root — of a plant
  6. club — for dancing
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bound — certain
  10. prune — to trim
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. club — for golf
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. bound — obliged
  16. bound — tied together
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. row — a line
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. hand — in cards
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. root — of a word
  23. row — to paddle
  24. hand — help

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