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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. root — of a word
  3. stock — shares
  4. root — the cause
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. tube — the underground
  8. rule — a law
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. kid — to tease
  11. saw — the tool
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. root — of a plant
  15. bound — obliged
  16. saw — the tool
  17. bound — tied together
  18. rule — government
  19. tube — a container
  20. kid — child
  21. bound — certain
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. rule — to rule out

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