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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 a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. court — of law
  3. stock — goods
  4. pit — a hole
  5. cold — not warm
  6. spring — a coil
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. staff — a stick
  9. staff — employees
  10. court — of a king
  11. race — a contest
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. spring — of water
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. root — the cause
  16. race — the arms race
  17. spring — the season
  18. court — for sport
  19. race — humankind
  20. pit — in a race
  21. staff — employees
  22. stock — shares
  23. root — of a word
  24. cold — an illness

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