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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. stock — shares
  4. game — wild animals
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. stock — goods
  8. game — a match
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. charge — electricity
  11. track — a path
  12. root — of a plant
  13. capital — a city
  14. track — a song
  15. track — to keep track
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. capital — money
  19. root — the cause
  20. charge — a price
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. root — of a word
  24. stem — to come from

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