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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. net — after costs
  4. net — in sport
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. band — a ring
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. net — for catching
  11. ground — a position
  12. band — a music group
  13. root — the cause
  14. ground — the earth
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. shower — rain
  17. root — of a plant
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. shower — to wash
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. root — of a word

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