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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: bear · racket · field · bore · root · chest · fan · wind

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. root — the cause
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. wind — moving air
  6. field — for sport
  7. bore — to drill
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. field — farmland
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. wind — moving air
  12. bear — the animal
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. chest — of your body
  15. field — a subject
  16. bore — to tire
  17. root — of a plant
  18. chest — of your body
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. chest — a box
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. root — of a word
  24. bear — the animal

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