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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: court · wind · track · cell · root · march · net · racket

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. march — music
  3. track — a path
  4. net — in sport
  5. net — after costs
  6. cell — in biology
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. root — of a word
  9. net — for catching
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. track — a song
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. root — of a plant
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — moving air
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. march — the month
  18. court — of law
  19. track — to keep track
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — for sport
  22. march — the month
  23. cell — a phone
  24. root — the cause

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