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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. bass — low music
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. root — of a plant
  5. season — of the year
  6. bark — to shout
  7. root — of a word
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. pop — music
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. season — in sport
  12. bass — the fish
  13. pop — to visit
  14. press — a publisher
  15. root — the cause
  16. press — to push
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. press — newspapers
  20. rush — hurry
  21. pop — soda
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. bark — of a tree

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