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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. land — a country
  3. stock — goods
  4. kid — child
  5. game — wild animals
  6. fork — in a road
  7. land — to come down
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. land — ground
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. root — the cause
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. stock — shares
  15. deal — to handle
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. root — of a word
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. root — of a plant
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. kid — to tease
  23. game — a match
  24. fork — a garden 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