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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.

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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: ball · key · bowl · dip · racket · root · cap · tear

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. root — of a word
  3. tear — to rip
  4. cap — a hat
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. tear — from crying
  8. key — for a lock
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. key — in music
  11. cap — a lid
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. root — of a plant
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. cap — of ice
  16. key — the most important part
  17. ball — a dance
  18. root — the cause
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. tear — from crying
  24. dip — to sink

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