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

Word bank: root · trunk · rest · snap · pitch · court · game · perch

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. root — of a word
  3. court — for sport
  4. rest — a break
  5. pitch — completely
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. game — a match
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. game — wild animals
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. court — of law
  16. snap — to click
  17. court — of a king
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. perch — the fish
  20. root — of a plant
  21. rest — what's left
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. root — the cause
  24. rest — what's left

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