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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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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: pop · roll · last · dip · bat · root · pitch · stock

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. pop — to visit
  3. roll — a cake
  4. root — of a word
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — final
  8. root — the cause
  9. bat — the animal
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. stock — shares
  14. pitch — completely
  15. pop — music
  16. root — of a plant
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. roll — a list
  20. pop — soda
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. last — finally
  24. dip — to sink

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