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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. root — the cause
  3. stock — goods
  4. stock — shares
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. court — for sport
  7. race — humankind
  8. race — the arms race
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. root — of a plant
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. wake — a trail
  15. band — a music group
  16. band — a ring
  17. court — of a king
  18. race — a contest
  19. root — of a word
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. kick — in football
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. wake — before a funeral

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