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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: root · season · mate · roll · pop · track · ground · mine

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. season — of the year
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. pop — music
  5. mate — to breed
  6. roll — a cake
  7. pop — soda
  8. mine — for digging
  9. ground — a position
  10. root — of a plant
  11. ground — the earth
  12. root — of a word
  13. track — a song
  14. root — the cause
  15. track — a path
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. season — in sport
  18. ground — crushed
  19. mate — a partner
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. track — to keep track
  22. roll — a list
  23. mate — a friend
  24. mine — an explosive

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