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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: degree · kick · roll · wave · perch · stick · stock · root

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. root — of a plant
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. degree — an amount
  7. degree — temperature
  8. degree — from a university
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. root — the cause
  15. roll — a cake
  16. kick — in football
  17. stock — shares
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. stock — goods
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. roll — a list
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. perch — the fish

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