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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: lie · cold · suit · present · land · mine · root · last

  1. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. land — ground
  3. last — final
  4. mine — for digging
  5. present — the time now
  6. suit — to fit
  7. present — there
  8. cold — not warm
  9. suit — in cards
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. present — a gift
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. cold — an illness
  14. root — of a word
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. land — to come down
  18. last — to go on
  19. lie — to recline
  20. land — a country
  21. last — finally
  22. root — the cause
  23. root — of a plant
  24. cold — the Cold War

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