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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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: cold · bore · root · saw · degree · patient · mark · stock

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. root — the cause
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. stock — goods
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. root — of a word
  7. cold — an illness
  8. degree — an amount
  9. degree — from a university
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. bore — to tire
  12. degree — temperature
  13. stock — shares
  14. saw — the tool
  15. cold — not warm
  16. mark — a trace
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. root — of a plant
  21. saw — the tool
  22. mark — a grade
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. bore — to drill

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