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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: land · plane · club · root · cold · jam · date · bowl

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. club — a group
  3. land — a country
  4. club — for golf
  5. club — for dancing
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. cold — an illness
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. plane — a tool
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. root — the cause
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. root — of a word
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. land — ground
  21. land — to come down
  22. root — of a plant
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. cold — not warm

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