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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 116 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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. root — the cause
  3. bat — the animal
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. stock — goods
  8. root — of a plant
  9. stock — shares
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. field — a subject
  13. dip — to sink
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. field — farmland
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. rush — hurry
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. wake — a trail
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. field — for sport
  24. root — of a word

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