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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. root — of a word
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. bear — the animal
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. shower — to wash
  10. row — a line
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. row — to paddle
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. root — of a plant
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. ball — a dance
  19. pass — a permit
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. shower — rain
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. root — the cause
  24. bear — the animal

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