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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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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. root — of a word
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. bear — the animal
  5. stock — goods
  6. bear — the animal
  7. stock — shares
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. season — of the year
  10. root — of a plant
  11. stand — to bear
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. root — the cause
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. season — in sport
  18. stand — on your feet

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