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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.

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: charge · ball · fan · root · racket · clip · bat · club

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. club — for dancing
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. ball — a great time
  7. club — for golf
  8. charge — a price
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. clip — a video
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. bat — the animal
  13. root — of a plant
  14. clip — for paper
  15. charge — in control
  16. root — of a word
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. club — a group
  19. root — the cause
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. ball — a dance
  22. charge — electricity
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. clip — to cut

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