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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. pound — a weight
  3. content — the amount
  4. root — of a word
  5. root — of a plant
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. march — music
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. season — in sport
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. season — of the year
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. march — the month
  18. mine — for digging
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. content — happy
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. kick — in football
  23. root — the cause
  24. racket — for tennis

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