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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: club · plane · leaves · root · spell · rash · straw · wound

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. rash — hasty
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. wound — an injury
  5. spell — letters
  6. plane — a tool
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. club — for dancing
  12. rash — a series
  13. root — of a plant
  14. wound — an injury
  15. club — for golf
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. root — of a word
  18. spell — a short time
  19. club — a group
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. spell — magic
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. root — the cause
  24. rash — on the skin

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