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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. root — the cause
  3. squash — the sport
  4. squash — to crush
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. root — of a plant
  15. root — of a word
  16. pit — in a race
  17. ball — a great time
  18. pit — a hole
  19. row — a line
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. row — to paddle
  23. perch — the fish
  24. calf — a young animal

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