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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: spring · band · bowl · root · pop · rash · wave · straw

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. root — of a plant
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. spring — a coil
  5. band — a ring
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. pop — to visit
  9. rash — a series
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. spring — of water
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. spring — the season
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. pop — soda
  20. rash — hasty
  21. root — the cause
  22. pop — music
  23. band — a music group
  24. root — of a word

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