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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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. root — of a word
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. cap — a lid
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — finally
  7. net — after costs
  8. track — to keep track
  9. track — a song
  10. root — the cause
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. root — of a plant
  13. cap — a hat
  14. net — in sport
  15. last — final
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. ball — a dance
  19. ball — a great time
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. net — for catching
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. wax — to grow
  24. track — a path

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