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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: snap · root · temple · pitcher · pound · file · present · stock

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  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. temple — a place of worship
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. root — the cause
  4. stock — shares
  5. present — the time now
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. file — a document
  9. pound — a weight
  10. root — of a word
  11. stock — goods
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. present — there
  15. file — a tool
  16. present — a gift
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. snap — to click
  22. file — a line of people
  23. temple — side of the head
  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