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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. land — ground
  3. cap — a lid
  4. track — to keep track
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. root — of a plant
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. land — to come down
  9. cap — of ice
  10. root — the cause
  11. chip — for betting
  12. chip — to eat
  13. band — a ring
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. game — a match
  16. track — a path
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. cap — a hat
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. root — of a word
  21. track — a song
  22. land — a country
  23. band — a music group
  24. band — a rubber band

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