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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. bank — of a river
  3. pop — soda
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. pop — music
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. land — ground
  8. bank — for money
  9. toast — bread
  10. bank — for money
  11. land — a country
  12. bore — to drill
  13. pop — to visit
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. bat — the animal
  16. root — of a plant
  17. root — of a word
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. bore — to tire
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. root — the cause
  22. land — to come down
  23. stock — goods
  24. bat — for baseball

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