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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 was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. land — ground
  3. pound — a weight
  4. land — to come down
  5. can — to be able to
  6. band — a ring
  7. band — a music group
  8. can — a tin
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. can — a tin
  11. ball — a dance
  12. root — of a word
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. file — a tool
  15. root — of a plant
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. file — a document
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. land — a country
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. file — a line of people
  24. root — the cause

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