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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 120 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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. season — of the year
  3. last — to go on
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. land — ground
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. season — in sport
  9. last — finally
  10. present — there
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. root — the cause
  13. wax — to grow
  14. last — final
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. root — of a plant
  17. land — a country
  18. root — of a word
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. plane — a tool
  21. present — a gift
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. present — the time now
  24. land — to come down

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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