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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: root · bowl · leaves · hand · rock · capital · wax · stock

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. stock — shares
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. root — of a word
  6. hand — help
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. capital — money
  11. rock — music
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. stock — goods
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. rock — a stone
  17. capital — a city
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. wax — to grow
  21. root — of a plant
  22. root — the cause
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. hand — in cards

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