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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. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. root — of a word
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. key — for a lock
  5. cold — an illness
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. stock — shares
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. saw — the tool
  14. cold — not warm
  15. band — a ring
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. key — in music
  18. saw — the tool
  19. root — of a plant
  20. key — the most important part
  21. band — a music group
  22. stock — goods
  23. wake — a trail
  24. branch — a division

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