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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bass · land · jam · chip · pitcher · kid · root · bowl

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. chip — for betting
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. land — to come down
  6. root — of a plant
  7. root — of a word
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. kid — to tease
  10. chip — to eat
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. land — a country
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. root — the cause
  16. land — ground
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. kid — child
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bass — the fish
  24. bass — low music

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