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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 116 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: season · perch · cabinet · root · racket · lash · bat · band

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. root — of a plant
  4. season — in sport
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. perch — the fish
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. root — of a word
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. band — a ring
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. root — the cause
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. season — of the year
  24. band — a music group

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