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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: mark · wind · ground · mine · temple · key · root · rock

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. ground — a position
  3. wind — moving air
  4. mine — for digging
  5. key — the most important part
  6. root — of a word
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. key — for a lock
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. root — of a plant
  13. mark — a trace
  14. key — in music
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. rock — a stone
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. rock — music
  19. wind — moving air
  20. ground — the earth
  21. root — the cause
  22. ground — crushed
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. mine — an explosive

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