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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.

Make a worksheet

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: squash · root · land · wind · bass · lean · spring · prune

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. spring — the season
  3. prune — to trim
  4. squash — to crush
  5. prune — to trim
  6. land — to come down
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. root — of a word
  9. lean — thin
  10. lean — to bend
  11. squash — the sport
  12. wind — moving air
  13. root — the cause
  14. root — of a plant
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bass — low music
  18. spring — of water
  19. land — a country
  20. spring — a coil
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. land — ground

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