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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 116 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: tear · row · spring · racket · rest · hand · root · bowl

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. rest — what's left
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. root — of a word
  5. rest — what's left
  6. tear — to rip
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. row — to paddle
  9. root — the cause
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. rest — a break
  13. row — a line
  14. spring — a coil
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. spring — of water
  18. root — of a plant
  19. hand — help
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. tear — from crying
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. tear — from crying
  24. spring — the season

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