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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: root · content · rush · club · wind · spell · spring · tube

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. club — for golf
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. root — the cause
  5. spell — magic
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. tube — a container
  8. content — happy
  9. spell — letters
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. spell — a short time
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. spring — a coil
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — moving air
  16. tube — the underground
  17. spring — of water
  18. spring — the season
  19. rush — hurry
  20. root — of a word
  21. club — a group
  22. content — the amount
  23. club — for dancing
  24. root — of a plant

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