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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. key — the most important part
  3. sharp — clever
  4. root — the cause
  5. race — the arms race
  6. root — of a word
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. stock — shares
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. clip — to cut
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. clip — for paper
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. race — a contest
  17. race — humankind
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. clip — a video
  20. key — for a lock
  21. root — of a plant
  22. stem — to come from
  23. key — in music
  24. calf — a young animal

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