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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 116 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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. root — of a plant
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. root — of a word
  5. key — the most important part
  6. land — ground
  7. hand — help
  8. field — farmland
  9. kick — in football
  10. field — a subject
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. hand — in cards
  14. land — a country
  15. land — to come down
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. root — the cause
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. key — for a lock
  20. key — in music
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. pound — a weight
  24. field — for sport

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