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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 · rest · field · cabinet · root · racket · bat · band

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. field — a subject
  4. field — for sport
  5. rest — a break
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. rest — what's left
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. root — the cause
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. rule — government
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. band — a music group
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. field — farmland
  18. rule — a law
  19. root — of a word
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. root — of a plant
  22. rest — what's left
  23. band — a ring
  24. bat — the animal

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