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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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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: toast · fan · squash · wind · root · club · capital · dip

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. squash — to crush
  6. wind — moving air
  7. club — for golf
  8. dip — to sink
  9. root — the cause
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. capital — a city
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. squash — the sport
  16. root — of a word
  17. club — a group
  18. wind — moving air
  19. club — for dancing
  20. root — of a plant
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. capital — money
  24. squash — the vegetable

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