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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. suit — to fit
  3. stem — to come from
  4. suit — clothes
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. suit — in cards
  7. race — a contest
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. spell — a short time
  11. degree — temperature
  12. spell — magic
  13. prune — to trim
  14. race — the arms race
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. rock — music
  17. rock — a stone
  18. spell — letters
  19. degree — from a university
  20. prune — to trim
  21. degree — an amount
  22. stock — goods
  23. race — humankind
  24. stem — a stem cell

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