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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 120 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: foot · cold · row · root · land · fork · season · patient

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. root — the cause
  4. row — to paddle
  5. land — ground
  6. row — a line
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. root — of a word
  10. land — a country
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. fork — in a road
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. cold — not warm
  15. land — to come down
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. season — in sport
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. root — of a plant
  23. cold — an illness
  24. foot — a measure

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