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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. chair — a leader
  3. press — a publisher
  4. root — the cause
  5. mine — for digging
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. root — of a plant
  9. press — to push
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. ball — a dance
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. root — of a word
  17. rock — music
  18. ball — a great time
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. rock — a stone
  21. pound — a weight
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. press — newspapers
  24. rock — to move gently

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