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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. last — final
  3. stem — to come from
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. pop — music
  6. last — to go on
  7. craft — boats
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. craft — a skill
  11. saw — the tool
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. saw — the tool
  14. pop — to visit
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. root — of a word
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. root — the cause
  20. last — finally
  21. root — of a plant
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. pop — soda
  24. bowl — a football final

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