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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: stock · saw · mate · bat · root · lean · spell · march

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. stock — goods
  5. lean — to bend
  6. spell — magic
  7. spell — letters
  8. march — the month
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — the animal
  11. root — of a word
  12. stock — shares
  13. root — of a plant
  14. mate — to breed
  15. lean — thin
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. saw — the tool
  18. root — the cause
  19. march — music
  20. mate — a partner
  21. march — the month
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. spell — a short time
  24. mate — a friend

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