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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. root — of a plant
  4. drill — the tool
  5. wound — an injury
  6. pop — to visit
  7. ball — a dance
  8. wound — an injury
  9. root — of a word
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. squash — the sport
  12. drill — army training
  13. pop — soda
  14. charge — a price
  15. drill — a practice
  16. squash — to crush
  17. charge — electricity
  18. charge — in control
  19. field — a subject
  20. root — the cause
  21. ball — a great time
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. field — farmland
  24. pop — music

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