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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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. stock — shares
  3. field — for sport
  4. land — a country
  5. land — to come down
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — farmland
  8. cell — in biology
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. root — of a word
  12. root — the cause
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. cell — a phone
  15. cue — for pool
  16. root — of a plant
  17. land — ground
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. stock — goods
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. cue — a hint

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