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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. stem — to come from
  3. chip — to eat
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. season — of the year
  6. chip — for betting
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. bass — low music
  9. season — in sport
  10. root — of a word
  11. cell — a phone
  12. root — the cause
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. stock — shares
  15. bass — the fish
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. last — to go on
  18. last — final
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. root — of a plant
  24. stock — goods

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