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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 116 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: staff · object · firm · wind · field · root · content · lie

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. object — to protest
  3. firm — decided
  4. staff — a stick
  5. root — the cause
  6. staff — employees
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. lie — to recline
  9. root — of a word
  10. object — an aim
  11. root — of a plant
  12. field — a subject
  13. wind — moving air
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. field — for sport
  16. content — the amount
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. firm — steady
  19. wind — moving air
  20. field — farmland
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. object — a thing
  23. staff — employees
  24. firm — a company

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