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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: rule · field · root · rush · bound · racket · foot · cold

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. bound — certain
  5. field — for sport
  6. rule — a law
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. bound — tied together
  9. cold — an illness
  10. foot — a measure
  11. root — of a plant
  12. field — a subject
  13. rush — hurry
  14. field — farmland
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. bound — obliged
  17. rule — government
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. root — the cause
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. rush — a thrill

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