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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: hand · sharp · cell · root · ground · land · current · cap

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. sharp — clever
  4. root — of a word
  5. cell — a phone
  6. ground — a position
  7. ground — the earth
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. current — happening now
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. land — ground
  12. land — a country
  13. ground — crushed
  14. cap — a lid
  15. cap — of ice
  16. hand — help
  17. cap — a hat
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. hand — in cards
  20. land — to come down
  21. current — electric
  22. root — of a plant
  23. root — the cause
  24. current — of water

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