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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. season — in sport
  3. root — of a word
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. root — the cause
  10. field — for sport
  11. scale — in music
  12. field — a subject
  13. root — of a plant
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. season — of the year
  18. scale — size or range
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. vault — a safe
  21. rock — a stone
  22. field — farmland
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. fan — a supporter

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