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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: ground · bound · kick · foot · root · racket · wind · last

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. bound — obliged
  3. foot — a measure
  4. last — final
  5. wind — moving air
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. ground — the earth
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. root — the cause
  10. last — to go on
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. root — of a word
  13. last — finally
  14. wind — moving air
  15. bound — tied together
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — in football
  18. ground — a position
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. root — of a plant
  22. bound — certain
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. racket — a loud noise

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