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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 116 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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. hand — help
  4. hand — in cards
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. land — ground
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. land — a country
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. root — of a plant
  12. chair — a leader
  13. craft — a skill
  14. root — the cause
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. root — of a word
  17. rash — a series
  18. craft — boats
  19. land — to come down
  20. pitch — completely
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. rash — hasty
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. racket — a loud noise

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