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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. swing — music
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. chair — a leader
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. scale — size or range
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. wound — an injury
  12. swing — to play on
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. scale — in music
  17. fork — in a road
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. root — of a plant
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. wound — an injury
  23. root — the cause
  24. swing — in golf

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