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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. chair — a leader
  3. drill — the tool
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. land — ground
  6. ground — a position
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. ground — crushed
  10. land — a country
  11. drill — a practice
  12. root — of a plant
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. bat — the animal
  16. ground — the earth
  17. drill — army training
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. root — the cause
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. land — to come down
  22. root — of a word
  23. rock — music
  24. rock — a stone

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