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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. last — finally
  3. staff — a stick
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. stock — goods
  6. land — a country
  7. staff — employees
  8. root — the cause
  9. ball — a great time
  10. land — ground
  11. bank — of a river
  12. cell — a phone
  13. last — to go on
  14. root — of a plant
  15. bank — for money
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. last — final
  18. stock — shares
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. land — to come down
  21. cell — in biology
  22. staff — employees
  23. bank — for money
  24. ball — a dance

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