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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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468
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: swing · bat · stock · mate · rash · foot · root · racket

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. rash — hasty
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. stock — shares
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. rash — a series
  8. mate — a friend
  9. swing — to play on
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. mate — to breed
  12. stock — goods
  13. mate — a partner
  14. root — of a word
  15. swing — in golf
  16. root — the cause
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. bat — the animal
  19. foot — a measure
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. swing — music
  24. root — of a plant

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