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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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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: staff · root · ruler · race · land · wound · nail · court

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. wound — an injury
  3. root — the cause
  4. staff — a stick
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. staff — employees
  7. race — humankind
  8. root — of a plant
  9. land — ground
  10. wound — an injury
  11. court — of law
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. court — for sport
  15. staff — employees
  16. race — the arms race
  17. court — of a king
  18. race — a contest
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. root — of a word
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. land — to come down

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