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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 116 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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pound · firm · file · root · mine · track

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. 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. firm — decided
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. root — of a word
  5. file — a tool
  6. firm — steady
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. file — a document
  9. file — a line of people
  10. mine — for digging
  11. track — a path
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. pound — a weight
  14. track — to keep track
  15. firm — a company
  16. track — a song
  17. root — the cause
  18. 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