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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: band · bore · root · chair · land · ground · fan · spring

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. ground — the earth
  3. ground — crushed
  4. land — a country
  5. spring — of water
  6. land — ground
  7. root — of a word
  8. root — the cause
  9. bore — to drill
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. band — a ring
  14. chair — a leader
  15. band — a music group
  16. root — of a plant
  17. spring — a coil
  18. bore — to tire
  19. ground — a position
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. land — to come down
  24. band — a rubber band

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