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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wound · bowl · season · row · root · track · date · snap

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. track — a song
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. track — a path
  7. row — to paddle
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. row — a line
  11. root — of a word
  12. wound — an injury
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. snap — to click
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. date — the fruit
  19. track — to keep track
  20. root — the cause
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. season — of the year
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. season — in sport

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