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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. root — the cause
  3. root — of a plant
  4. mine — for digging
  5. fine — high quality
  6. land — a country
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. spell — a short time
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bound — obliged
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. land — to come down
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. perch — the fish
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bound — tied together
  20. bound — certain
  21. spell — letters
  22. fine — all right
  23. spell — magic
  24. root — of a word

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