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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 124 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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. pit — a hole
  5. root — of a plant
  6. rash — a series
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. mug — to rob
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pit — in a race
  14. rule — a law
  15. mug — a face
  16. rash — hasty
  17. root — the cause
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. mug — a cup
  20. root — of a word
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. rule — government
  24. bark — to shout

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