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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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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: mark · bat · season · cue · game · roll · root · jam

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. cue — a hint
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. game — wild animals
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. mark — a trace
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. roll — a cake
  12. season — in sport
  13. root — of a plant
  14. cue — a signal
  15. root — the cause
  16. bat — the animal
  17. game — a match
  18. season — of the year
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. roll — a list
  22. cue — for pool
  23. root — of a word
  24. jam — in traffic

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