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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 120 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: mug · chair · land · pit · pop · ground · root · wake

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. chair — a leader
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. mug — a cup
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. land — to come down
  8. root — the cause
  9. mug — a face
  10. root — of a plant
  11. pit — a hole
  12. land — ground
  13. root — of a word
  14. land — a country
  15. ground — a position
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. pit — in a race
  18. pop — music
  19. wake — a trail
  20. mug — to rob
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. pop — soda
  23. pop — to visit
  24. ground — crushed

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