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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: firm · march · wound · sharp · root · spell · tube · racket

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. march — the month
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. firm — steady
  6. tube — the underground
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. root — of a word
  9. root — of a plant
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. march — music
  12. firm — decided
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. spell — a short time
  15. wound — an injury
  16. root — the cause
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. march — the month
  20. sharp — clever
  21. firm — a company
  22. tube — a container
  23. spell — magic
  24. spell — letters

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