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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: ball · wound · land · court · branch · pound · root · wake

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. wake — a trail
  3. branch — a division
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. wound — an injury
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. land — ground
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. pound — a weight
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. root — the cause
  14. land — to come down
  15. court — of law
  16. court — for sport
  17. ball — a dance
  18. ball — a great time
  19. court — of a king
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. root — of a word
  22. land — a country
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wake — before a funeral

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