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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 · root · roll · kick · season · wound · land · prune

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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 plant
  3. stock — goods
  4. root — of a word
  5. roll — a list
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. kick — in football
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. root — the cause
  11. wound — an injury
  12. season — in sport
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — to trim
  15. land — a country
  16. season — of the year
  17. land — ground
  18. stock — shares
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. roll — a cake
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. land — to come down
  24. wound — an injury

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