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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. rest — what's left
  6. game — a match
  7. game — wild animals
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. perch — the fish
  13. root — the cause
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bat — the animal
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. root — of a plant
  20. rest — what's left
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. rest — a break
  24. plane — a tool

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