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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: land · racket · bulb · drill · root · cap · mine · current

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. current — happening now
  4. root — of a word
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bulb — for light
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. drill — the tool
  9. mine — for digging
  10. drill — a practice
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. cap — a lid
  13. land — ground
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. current — of water
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. current — electric
  19. root — of a plant
  20. cap — a hat
  21. land — to come down
  22. root — the cause
  23. land — a country
  24. cap — of ice

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