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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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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: bat · stock · pop · bay · stem · kid · root · chair

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. stock — shares
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. stem — to come from
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. stock — goods
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — the animal
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. chair — a leader
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. pop — soda
  15. kid — to tease
  16. pop — to visit
  17. root — of a plant
  18. kid — child
  19. root — of a word
  20. root — the cause
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. pop — music
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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