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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stock — goods
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. branch — a division
  5. bass — the fish
  6. root — the cause
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. race — the arms race
  9. bass — low music
  10. lean — thin
  11. race — a contest
  12. root — of a plant
  13. race — humankind
  14. hand — help
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. drill — the tool
  17. hand — in cards
  18. drill — army training
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. root — of a word
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. lean — to bend
  23. stock — shares
  24. drill — a practice

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