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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. root — of a word
  3. root — the cause
  4. root — of a plant
  5. ball — a dance
  6. season — of the year
  7. land — a country
  8. bass — the fish
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. field — a subject
  11. field — for sport
  12. ball — a great time
  13. land — to come down
  14. season — in sport
  15. bass — low music
  16. land — ground
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. field — farmland

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