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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 · track · last · kid · root · cabinet · bay · bore

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. track — a path
  3. last — final
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. track — to keep track
  6. bore — to tire
  7. root — of a plant
  8. land — a country
  9. kid — child
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. land — ground
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. last — finally
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. last — to go on
  17. track — a song
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. kid — to tease
  20. bore — to drill
  21. land — to come down
  22. root — of a word
  23. root — the cause
  24. cabinet — ministers

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