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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: stock · ruler · chest · root · bowl · race

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. chest — of your body
  3. root — of a word
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. root — of a plant
  7. race — the arms race
  8. root — the cause
  9. stock — goods
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. stock — shares
  14. chest — of your body
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. chest — a box
  17. race — a contest
  18. ruler — for measuring

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