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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. root — the cause
  3. content — happy
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. swing — to play on
  6. root — of a plant
  7. cold — not warm
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. cold — an illness
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. root — of a word
  12. swing — music
  13. race — the arms race
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. race — a contest
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. swing — in golf
  19. wake — a trail
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. race — humankind
  24. content — the amount

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