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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. band — a ring
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. root — of a plant
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. season — of the year
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. season — in sport
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. foot — a measure
  15. bat — the animal
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. branch — a division
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. root — the cause
  21. band — a music group
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. foot — part of the body

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