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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 120 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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. field — farmland
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. root — the cause
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. wind — moving air
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. stock — goods
  12. dip — to sink
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. field — for sport
  18. root — of a word
  19. wake — a trail
  20. saw — the tool
  21. wind — moving air
  22. field — a subject
  23. root — of a plant
  24. saw — the tool

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