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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: racket · root · rush · season · board · stem · file · mine

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. root — the cause
  4. root — of a word
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. file — a tool
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. file — a line of people
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. season — in sport
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. file — a document
  14. board — to get on
  15. mine — for digging
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. stem — to come from
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. season — of the year
  21. rush — hurry
  22. root — of a plant
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. board — a committee

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