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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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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: band · sharp · hide · foot · racket · present · wound · root

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  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. root — of a word
  2. present — there
  3. foot — a measure
  4. present — the time now
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. root — of a plant
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. band — a ring
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. root — the cause
  16. wound — an injury
  17. present — a gift
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. sharp — clever
  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