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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: wind · root · race · swing · bark · craft · patient · kid

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. root — of a word
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. root — the cause
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. kid — to tease
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. kid — child
  9. bark — to shout
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. wind — moving air
  12. root — of a plant
  13. race — the arms race
  14. swing — music
  15. race — humankind
  16. swing — to play on
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. craft — boats
  19. wind — moving air
  20. craft — a skill
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. race — a contest
  24. wind — to turn a key

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