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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: fall · sharp · march · leaves · swing · root · kid · game

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. swing — in golf
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. game — a match
  5. swing — music
  6. fall — to drop
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. swing — to play on
  9. march — the month
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. root — the cause
  12. march — the month
  13. sharp — clever
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. kid — to tease
  17. fall — the season
  18. kid — child
  19. fall — to drop
  20. game — wild animals
  21. march — music
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. root — of a plant

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