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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. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. chip — for betting
  3. land — ground
  4. scale — in music
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. land — to come down
  7. root — the cause
  8. chip — to eat
  9. field — a subject
  10. mark — a trace
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. field — for sport
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. field — farmland
  15. land — a country
  16. mark — a grade
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. content — happy
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. root — of a plant
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. content — the amount

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