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

Word bank: plane · kid · saw · land · toast · root · wound · stick

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. 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. land — a country
  2. saw — the tool
  3. kid — child
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. land — to come down
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — an injury
  8. root — the cause
  9. plane — a tool
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. land — ground
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. root — of a word
  19. saw — the tool
  20. kid — to tease
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. toast — bread
  24. 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