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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: squash · pitch · bound · root · wind · land · band · face

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. land — ground
  3. root — of a word
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. pitch — completely
  6. band — a ring
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. face — to confront
  9. face — to point toward
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. squash — to crush
  12. land — a country
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. bound — obliged
  15. bound — tied together
  16. wind — moving air
  17. root — the cause
  18. face — part of the head
  19. band — a music group
  20. wind — moving air
  21. land — to come down
  22. squash — the sport
  23. bound — certain
  24. pitch — a sports field

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