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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 116 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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. track — a path
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. root — of a word
  6. ground — the earth
  7. ground — crushed
  8. capital — a city
  9. root — of a plant
  10. track — to keep track
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. pitch — completely
  15. track — a song
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. snap — to click
  18. root — the cause
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. ground — a position
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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