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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 124 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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. board — to get on
  4. spell — magic
  5. land — to come down
  6. perch — the fish
  7. hand — in cards
  8. board — a committee
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bear — the animal
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. root — of a plant
  15. root — the cause
  16. spell — a short time
  17. spell — letters
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. land — a country
  23. hand — help
  24. land — ground

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