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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. stock — shares
  3. bark — to shout
  4. charge — in control
  5. capital — a city
  6. root — of a word
  7. root — of a plant
  8. root — the cause
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. race — the arms race
  12. spell — magic
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. capital — money
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. race — a contest
  18. spell — letters
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. spell — a short time
  21. charge — a price
  22. race — humankind
  23. charge — electricity
  24. stock — goods

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