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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. bound — tied together
  3. stock — goods
  4. band — a music group
  5. bound — certain
  6. court — of a king
  7. bore — to tire
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. band — a ring
  11. cell — in biology
  12. root — of a plant
  13. cell — a phone
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. root — of a word
  17. bore — to drill
  18. court — of law
  19. bound — obliged
  20. court — for sport
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. root — the cause
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. bowl — a dish

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