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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: pound · march · root · row · ground · deal · spell · net

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. root — of a plant
  3. net — after costs
  4. root — the cause
  5. march — music
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. deal — to handle
  8. march — the month
  9. spell — magic
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. spell — letters
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. ground — a position
  15. pound — a weight
  16. row — to paddle
  17. root — of a word
  18. net — for catching
  19. net — in sport
  20. row — a line
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. ground — the earth
  23. spell — a short time
  24. march — the month

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