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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 120 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: spring · racket · stand · fan · chest · pop · hand · root

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. chest — of your body
  4. hand — in cards
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. root — of a word
  7. stand — to bear
  8. chest — of your body
  9. spring — the season
  10. root — of a plant
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. root — the cause
  13. pop — music
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. spring — of water
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. pop — soda
  18. hand — help
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. spring — a coil
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. pop — to visit

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