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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: march · present · craft · land · pound · row · tube · root

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. march — the month
  3. land — ground
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. root — the cause
  6. pound — a weight
  7. present — there
  8. march — the month
  9. land — a country
  10. tube — a container
  11. march — music
  12. craft — a skill
  13. present — the time now
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. root — of a plant
  17. row — to paddle
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. land — to come down
  20. present — a gift
  21. tube — the underground
  22. row — a line
  23. craft — boats
  24. pound — for dogs

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