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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 have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  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. foot — part of the body
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. land — ground
  4. wind — moving air
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. key — for a lock
  7. mine — for digging
  8. land — to come down
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. root — the cause
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. land — a country
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. foot — a measure
  16. key — the most important part
  17. wind — moving air
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. key — in music
  21. root — of a word
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. arm — part of the body
  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