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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: game · ground · safe · mine · track · roll · wound · stem

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. track — a song
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. track — a path
  6. ground — a position
  7. ground — the earth
  8. game — wild animals
  9. roll — a cake
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. game — a match
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. track — to keep track
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. roll — a list
  19. wound — an injury
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. wound — an injury
  23. game — a kind of play
  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