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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. game — wild animals
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. root — of a word
  7. bulb — for light
  8. pitch — completely
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. charge — in control
  11. pop — soda
  12. root — the cause
  13. pop — music
  14. kid — child
  15. bulb — for light
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. pop — to visit
  18. game — a match
  19. root — of a plant
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. charge — a price
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. charge — electricity
  24. racket — for tennis

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