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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. cap — a hat
  4. stock — shares
  5. root — of a word
  6. spell — letters
  7. root — the cause
  8. hand — help
  9. squash — the sport
  10. spell — magic
  11. hand — in cards
  12. court — of a king
  13. cap — a lid
  14. spell — a short time
  15. squash — to crush
  16. stock — goods
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. root — of a plant
  19. cap — of ice
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. court — for sport
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. branch — a division

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