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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'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. spring — a coil
  3. club — for golf
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — a tin
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. club — a group
  8. foot — a measure
  9. root — of a plant
  10. land — to come down
  11. root — of a word
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. club — for dancing
  14. spring — the season
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. root — the cause
  17. land — a country
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. spring — of water
  20. stock — shares
  21. stock — goods
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. can — to be able to
  24. calf — a young animal

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