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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: root · foot · wound · ground · cold · cap · rush · pop

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. pop — to visit
  3. pop — music
  4. rush — hurry
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. cap — a hat
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. root — of a plant
  10. ground — a position
  11. root — of a word
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. ground — the earth
  14. pop — soda
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cap — of ice
  17. foot — a measure
  18. cold — not warm
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. cap — a lid
  21. ground — crushed
  22. root — the cause
  23. wound — an injury
  24. foot — part of the body

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