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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 can't ________________ this cold.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. capital — money
  4. bat — the animal
  5. root — of a word
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. board — a committee
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a line
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. root — of a plant
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. capital — a city
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. root — the cause
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. deal — to handle
  21. board — to get on
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. bat — in an idiom
  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