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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. present — a gift
  3. root — of a word
  4. present — there
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bore — to tire
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bore — to drill
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. season — in sport
  13. root — the cause
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. bat — the animal
  16. mine — for digging
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. stock — shares
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. root — of a plant
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. season — of the year
  23. present — the time now
  24. stock — a soup base

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