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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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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: pitch · spell · root · cold · wave · wind · plane · net

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. root — of a plant
  3. net — after costs
  4. spell — magic
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. cold — an illness
  9. spell — letters
  10. wind — moving air
  11. cold — not warm
  12. root — of a word
  13. plane — a tool
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pitch — completely
  16. root — the cause
  17. net — in sport
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. spell — a short time
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. net — for catching
  24. wave — with your hand

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