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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. stock — shares
  3. clip — to cut
  4. stock — goods
  5. plane — a tool
  6. cell — a phone
  7. face — to point toward
  8. firm — a company
  9. firm — decided
  10. firm — steady
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. root — the cause
  13. cell — in biology
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. clip — a video
  16. face — to confront
  17. pop — soda
  18. pop — to visit
  19. face — part of the head
  20. clip — for paper
  21. root — of a plant
  22. pop — music
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. plane — an aircraft

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