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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: season · track · root · ball · cold · land · lie · fall

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. track — to keep track
  3. cold — an illness
  4. fall — the season
  5. root — of a plant
  6. fall — to drop
  7. root — the cause
  8. root — of a word
  9. ball — a great time
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. season — in sport
  12. land — ground
  13. fall — to drop
  14. lie — to recline
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. land — to come down
  17. track — a song
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. track — a path
  21. land — a country
  22. season — of the year
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. ball — a dance

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