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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: spring · wind · can · court · lash · cap · squash · root

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. spring — of water
  3. wind — moving air
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. cap — of ice
  7. cap — a hat
  8. court — of a king
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. can — a tin
  11. wind — moving air
  12. spring — the season
  13. court — for sport
  14. root — of a word
  15. root — the cause
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. spring — a coil
  18. root — of a plant
  19. court — of law
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. squash — the sport
  22. cap — a lid
  23. can — a tin
  24. squash — to crush

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