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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. root — of a word
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. land — to come down
  5. land — ground
  6. track — a song
  7. court — of a king
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. land — a country
  11. root — the cause
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. court — for sport
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. stand — to bear
  18. bat — the animal
  19. fork — in a road
  20. court — of law
  21. track — to keep track
  22. root — of a plant
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. fan — to cool the air

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