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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. roll — a cake
  3. root — of a plant
  4. root — of a word
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. roll — a list
  7. net — after costs
  8. swing — music
  9. root — the cause
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — for catching
  13. field — farmland
  14. march — music
  15. march — the month
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. swing — in golf
  18. march — the month
  19. ball — a great time
  20. field — a subject
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. ball — a dance
  23. field — for sport
  24. bowl — to roll

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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