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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: club · fan · cell · wind · mug · squash · root · wound

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. mug — a face
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. root — of a word
  5. mug — to rob
  6. root — of a plant
  7. club — for golf
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wound — an injury
  10. cell — a phone
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — moving air
  13. squash — to crush
  14. club — a group
  15. root — the cause
  16. wound — an injury
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. club — for dancing
  19. mug — a cup
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. squash — the sport
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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