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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. root — of a plant
  3. ground — the earth
  4. board — a committee
  5. stock — goods
  6. spell — magic
  7. ground — a position
  8. race — humankind
  9. object — to protest
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. root — the cause
  12. spell — letters
  13. root — of a word
  14. race — the arms race
  15. object — a thing
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. object — an aim
  18. board — to get on
  19. court — of law
  20. spell — a short time
  21. race — a contest
  22. stock — shares
  23. court — for sport
  24. ground — crushed

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