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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. drill — the tool
  3. club — a group
  4. land — ground
  5. land — a country
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. club — for golf
  8. object — to protest
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. root — the cause
  11. land — to come down
  12. root — of a plant
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. club — for dancing
  15. object — an aim
  16. object — a thing
  17. rash — a series
  18. rash — hasty
  19. drill — a practice
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. drill — army training
  23. root — of a word
  24. bat — the animal

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