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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.

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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.

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: root · ball · game · fork · track · pitcher · last · pop

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. last — to go on
  3. pop — music
  4. game — a match
  5. pop — soda
  6. track — a song
  7. ball — a dance
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. pop — to visit
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. root — of a plant
  12. game — wild animals
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. fork — in a road
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. root — the cause
  18. track — a path
  19. root — of a word
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. last — finally
  23. track — to keep track
  24. last — final

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