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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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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: season · ball · root · bowl · land · pop · bear · ground

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. ground — a position
  3. season — in sport
  4. ball — a dance
  5. ball — a great time
  6. root — the cause
  7. root — of a word
  8. land — a country
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. root — of a plant
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. pop — to visit
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. land — to come down
  18. bear — the animal
  19. land — ground
  20. ground — crushed
  21. pop — music
  22. ground — the earth
  23. season — of the year
  24. bowl — a dish

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