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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 120 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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. stock — goods
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. stock — shares
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. drill — a practice
  8. field — for sport
  9. root — of a plant
  10. wind — moving air
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. pound — a weight
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. field — farmland
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. deal — to handle
  18. drill — army training
  19. drill — the tool
  20. root — of a word
  21. wind — moving air
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. field — a subject
  24. root — the cause

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