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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. root — of a plant
  3. root — of a word
  4. stock — goods
  5. pop — music
  6. can — a tin
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. stock — shares
  10. band — a ring
  11. last — finally
  12. court — for sport
  13. last — to go on
  14. court — of a king
  15. pop — soda
  16. root — the cause
  17. can — to be able to
  18. pop — to visit
  19. court — of law
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. last — final
  22. band — a music group
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. fan — to cool the air

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