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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. can — a tin
  3. mine — for digging
  4. branch — a division
  5. field — for sport
  6. race — a contest
  7. field — farmland
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. can — to be able to
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. root — the cause
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. race — humankind
  17. field — a subject
  18. stock — shares
  19. root — of a plant
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. can — a tin
  22. race — the arms race
  23. root — of a word
  24. pass — a permit

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