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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: land · wind · bat · root · prune · fine · stand · track

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. stand — to bear
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. prune — to trim
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. root — of a word
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — moving air
  10. land — a country
  11. fine — high quality
  12. land — to come down
  13. track — to keep track
  14. prune — to trim
  15. bat — the animal
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. fine — all right
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. root — the cause
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. land — ground
  23. root — of a plant
  24. track — a song

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