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

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. root — the cause
  4. spring — a coil
  5. rash — a series
  6. root — of a plant
  7. row — a line
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. spring — the season
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. mine — for digging
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. plane — a tool
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. rash — hasty
  21. row — to paddle
  22. root — of a word
  23. spring — of water
  24. rush — hurry

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