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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: ground · root · land · file · ball · perch · fan · rash

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. file — a tool
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. ball — a great time
  5. land — a country
  6. ground — the earth
  7. ground — crushed
  8. land — to come down
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. ground — a position
  11. file — a line of people
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. ball — a dance
  15. perch — the fish
  16. rash — a series
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. file — a document
  20. root — of a word
  21. rash — hasty
  22. root — the cause
  23. root — of a plant
  24. land — ground

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