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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. pop — music
  4. mine — for digging
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. current — of water
  8. current — happening now
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. pop — soda
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. root — of a word
  15. root — of a plant
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. pitch — completely
  19. root — the cause
  20. pop — to visit
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. date — the fruit
  24. pitch — a sports field

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