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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. mark — a grade
  4. rest — what's left
  5. land — ground
  6. rest — a break
  7. root — of a word
  8. drill — a practice
  9. rest — what's left
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. stock — goods
  12. land — a country
  13. mark — a trace
  14. stem — to come from
  15. root — of a plant
  16. root — the cause
  17. drill — army training
  18. staff — a stick
  19. drill — the tool
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. stock — shares
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. land — to come down
  24. staff — employees

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