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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. root — of a word
  3. hand — in cards
  4. track — to keep track
  5. drill — army training
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — a box
  9. root — of a plant
  10. track — a song
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. root — the cause
  15. chest — of your body
  16. press — a publisher
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. hand — help
  19. press — to push
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. track — a path
  23. drill — a practice
  24. press — newspapers

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