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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  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. land — to come down
  2. land — ground
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. pound — a weight
  7. wake — a trail
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. land — a country
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. root — of a word
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — a box
  15. stand — to bear
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. chest — of your body
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. root — of a plant
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. craft — a skill
  23. craft — boats
  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