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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. track — a path
  5. bark — to shout
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. root — of a plant
  9. track — a song
  10. toast — bread
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. file — a tool
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. root — the cause
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. track — to keep track
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. file — a line of people
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. file — a document
  23. racket — a loud noise
  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