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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: racket · rest · net · pop · leaves · cold · bear · rock

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. cold — an illness
  4. bear — the animal
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. rest — a break
  7. cold — not warm
  8. rock — music
  9. rest — what's left
  10. net — for catching
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — after costs
  13. pop — to visit
  14. pop — soda
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. bear — the animal
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rest — what's left
  22. pop — music
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — a loud noise

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