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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: wind · tear · chair · nail · pound · scale · arm · root

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. root — of a word
  3. root — the cause
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. scale — size or range
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. tear — from crying
  11. wind — moving air
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. scale — in music
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. pound — a weight
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — to rip
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. root — of a plant
  22. wind — moving air
  23. chair — a leader
  24. arm — a part of something

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