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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 · rest · present · last · root · mate · lash · clip

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. root — of a word
  3. clip — to cut
  4. root — of a plant
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — final
  7. clip — for paper
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. stock — goods
  10. last — finally
  11. mate — to breed
  12. stock — shares
  13. present — there
  14. root — the cause
  15. mate — a partner
  16. rest — a break
  17. rest — what's left
  18. clip — a video
  19. mate — a friend
  20. present — a gift
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. rest — what's left
  24. present — the time now

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