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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: land · capital · file · dip · rush · pitcher · root · chair

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  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. root — the cause
  2. capital — money
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. capital — a city
  8. land — a country
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. land — to come down
  12. chair — a leader
  13. root — of a word
  14. dip — to sink
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. file — a tool
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. land — ground
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. file — a line of people
  21. file — a document
  22. rush — hurry
  23. chair — to sit on
  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