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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: mine · swing · tube · wind · degree · wake · spell · root

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. root — the cause
  3. root — of a plant
  4. swing — music
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. spell — letters
  7. swing — to play on
  8. degree — an amount
  9. tube — the underground
  10. wake — a trail
  11. root — of a word
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. wind — moving air
  14. mine — for digging
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. swing — in golf
  18. tube — a container
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. degree — temperature
  21. spell — magic
  22. degree — from a university
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. wind — moving air

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