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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. game — a match
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. root — the cause
  5. game — wild animals
  6. land — a country
  7. land — to come down
  8. spell — magic
  9. mine — for digging
  10. spell — a short time
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. bear — the animal
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. land — ground
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. board — a committee
  18. bear — the animal
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. board — to get on
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. root — of a word
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. root — of a plant

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