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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: degree · lash · capital · saw · leaves · root · file · stock

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. stock — shares
  4. capital — money
  5. saw — the tool
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. stock — goods
  10. file — a tool
  11. root — the cause
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. degree — from a university
  15. degree — an amount
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. root — of a plant
  18. file — a document
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. root — of a word
  21. degree — temperature
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. capital — a city
  24. file — a line of people

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