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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. march — the month
  5. roll — a list
  6. root — the cause
  7. prune — to trim
  8. land — ground
  9. root — of a word
  10. net — after costs
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. root — of a plant
  13. march — the month
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. prune — to trim
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. roll — a cake
  18. date — the fruit
  19. net — in sport
  20. land — a country
  21. march — music
  22. deal — to handle
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. net — for catching

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