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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 116 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: chip · wound · wind · club · bass · ground · root · nail

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. root — of a word
  3. ground — crushed
  4. chip — to eat
  5. wound — an injury
  6. club — a group
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. chip — for betting
  11. wound — an injury
  12. club — for golf
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. bass — low music
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. root — the cause
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. club — for dancing
  20. wind — moving air
  21. ground — a position
  22. root — of a plant
  23. wind — moving air
  24. ground — the earth

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