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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. wind — moving air
  7. root — of a word
  8. root — of a plant
  9. wind — moving air
  10. net — after costs
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. tube — a container
  13. race — humankind
  14. net — in sport
  15. root — the cause
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. tube — the underground
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. net — for catching
  23. race — the arms race
  24. race — a contest

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