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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: mate · land · wind · spell · pound · file · root · trunk

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. file — a document
  3. file — a tool
  4. mate — a partner
  5. spell — letters
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. wind — moving air
  8. land — ground
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. pound — a weight
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. root — the cause
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. spell — a short time
  17. wind — moving air
  18. file — a line of people
  19. root — of a word
  20. land — a country
  21. land — to come down
  22. mate — a friend
  23. spell — magic
  24. mate — to breed

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