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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: pop · ball · lie · racket · root · ground · shower · court

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. root — of a word
  3. pop — to visit
  4. ground — crushed
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. shower — rain
  8. shower — to wash
  9. ball — a dance
  10. root — the cause
  11. pop — soda
  12. court — for sport
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. ball — a great time
  16. court — of a king
  17. ground — a position
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. lie — to recline
  20. pop — music
  21. court — of law
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. ground — the earth

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