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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. root — of a plant
  3. key — for a lock
  4. root — of a word
  5. pop — music
  6. spring — of water
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. land — a country
  11. key — in music
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. pop — soda
  14. land — to come down
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. key — the most important part
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. root — the cause
  19. spring — a coil
  20. pop — to visit
  21. pitch — completely
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. land — ground
  24. spring — the season

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