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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 116 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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. cap — a lid
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. drill — a practice
  5. root — the cause
  6. race — humankind
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. court — of law
  12. race — a contest
  13. cap — a hat
  14. drill — army training
  15. dip — to sink
  16. drill — the tool
  17. root — of a word
  18. court — of a king
  19. cap — of ice
  20. root — of a plant
  21. court — for sport
  22. stock — goods
  23. race — the arms race
  24. dip — a sauce

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