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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 116 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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. key — for a lock
  3. fine — high quality
  4. fine — all right
  5. root — of a word
  6. snap — to click
  7. field — for sport
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. race — the arms race
  11. field — farmland
  12. race — humankind
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. key — in music
  16. stock — shares
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. key — the most important part
  20. race — a contest
  21. root — the cause
  22. field — a subject
  23. stock — goods
  24. root — of a plant

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