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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. root — of a word
  3. staff — employees
  4. stock — shares
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. ground — a position
  8. board — to get on
  9. ground — crushed
  10. board — a committee
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. root — of a plant
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. staff — a stick
  15. season — in sport
  16. stock — goods
  17. root — the cause
  18. ground — the earth
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. staff — employees
  22. band — a music group
  23. season — of the year
  24. band — a ring

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