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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. spring — a coil
  4. spring — of water
  5. track — a path
  6. spring — the season
  7. prune — to trim
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. prune — to trim
  10. chest — of your body
  11. can — to be able to
  12. root — the cause
  13. chair — a leader
  14. track — a song
  15. can — a tin
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. root — of a plant
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. can — a tin
  21. root — of a word
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. chest — a box
  24. chest — of your body

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