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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. file — a document
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. capital — a city
  6. vault — a safe
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. capital — money
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. root — of a plant
  11. file — a tool
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. root — of a word
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. file — a line of people
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. stem — to come from
  20. bore — to tire
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. bore — to drill
  24. root — the cause

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