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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 120 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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. pound — a weight
  3. root — of a plant
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. spring — the season
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. root — the cause
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. prune — to trim
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. prune — to trim
  14. spring — of water
  15. stock — goods
  16. game — a match
  17. spring — a coil
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. root — of a word
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. game — wild animals

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