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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. ground — a position
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. spell — letters
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. spell — a short time
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. mark — a trace
  12. mark — a grade
  13. bear — the animal
  14. root — of a plant
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. bear — the animal
  17. root — of a word
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. ground — the earth
  21. root — the cause
  22. ground — crushed
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. spell — magic

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