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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. fine — all right
  3. sharp — clever
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. fall — to drop
  9. perch — the fish
  10. bore — to tire
  11. wind — moving air
  12. root — the cause
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. root — of a plant
  17. fall — to drop
  18. wind — moving air
  19. fine — high quality
  20. fall — the season
  21. bore — to drill
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. root — of a word
  24. wind — to turn a key

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