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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.

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: root · march · tube · racket · rush · pop · perch · pitcher

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. march — the month
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. pop — music
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pop — soda
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. tube — the underground
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. perch — the fish
  13. root — of a plant
  14. pop — to visit
  15. root — the cause
  16. rush — hurry
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. march — the month
  19. root — of a word
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. tube — a container

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