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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · patient · bat · root · prune · row · mine · rock

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. land — to come down
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. root — the cause
  8. land — a country
  9. root — of a word
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. land — ground
  12. row — to paddle
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. bat — the animal
  15. row — a line
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. rock — music
  18. rock — a stone
  19. prune — to trim
  20. prune — to trim
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. root — of a plant
  23. mine — for digging
  24. rock — to move gently

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