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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 120 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: can · row · chair · wind · root · coach · cell · bear

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. cell — in biology
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. bear — the animal
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. can — to be able to
  10. row — a line
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. root — of a word
  13. bear — the animal
  14. can — a tin
  15. chair — a leader
  16. row — to paddle
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. wind — moving air
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. wind — moving air
  21. root — of a plant
  22. root — the cause
  23. cell — a phone
  24. coach — a trainer

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