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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  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. racket — a loud noise
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. root — of a plant
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. root — of a word
  6. mine — for digging
  7. sharp — clever
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. branch — a division
  14. fork — in a road
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. root — the cause
  23. trunk — of a tree
  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