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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. land — ground
  3. root — of a plant
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. can — a tin
  6. capital — a city
  7. root — the cause
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. can — a tin
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. mate — a partner
  13. land — to come down
  14. lie — to recline
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. root — of a word
  17. mate — to breed
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. can — to be able to
  20. capital — money
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. mate — a friend
  23. pitch — completely
  24. pitch — a sports field

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