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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: wound · board · land · rest · root · tear · field · charge

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — a country
  3. root — of a plant
  4. charge — in control
  5. field — for sport
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — what's left
  8. board — a committee
  9. wound — an injury
  10. field — a subject
  11. board — to get on
  12. tear — to rip
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. root — the cause
  15. root — of a word
  16. field — farmland
  17. rest — a break
  18. charge — electricity
  19. land — to come down
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — from crying
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wound — an injury
  24. charge — a price

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