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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 band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. march — music
  3. wound — an injury
  4. march — the month
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. race — the arms race
  7. wound — an injury
  8. root — of a plant
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. root — the cause
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. root — of a word
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. file — a line of people
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. march — the month
  18. file — a tool
  19. race — humankind
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. race — a contest
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. snap — to click
  24. file — a document

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