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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. root — of a word
  5. stock — shares
  6. stock — goods
  7. spell — magic
  8. root — the cause
  9. spell — a short time
  10. rash — a series
  11. root — of a plant
  12. game — a match
  13. rash — hasty
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. spell — letters
  18. trunk — of an elephant

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