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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 116 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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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: content · ground · staff · racket · patient · spell · key · root

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. ground — the earth
  3. spell — letters
  4. root — the cause
  5. staff — employees
  6. staff — employees
  7. ground — a position
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. root — of a plant
  13. root — of a word
  14. staff — a stick
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. spell — magic
  17. content — happy
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. key — for a lock
  20. spell — a short time
  21. content — the amount
  22. key — in music
  23. ground — crushed
  24. racket — for tennis

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