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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: staff · root · can · spring · pound · degree · stock · stem

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — employees
  3. stem — to come from
  4. degree — an amount
  5. spring — the season
  6. spring — a coil
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. pound — a weight
  9. degree — temperature
  10. degree — from a university
  11. stock — goods
  12. spring — of water
  13. can — to be able to
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. root — of a word
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. stock — shares
  19. can — a tin
  20. staff — a stick
  21. root — of a plant
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. can — a tin
  24. root — the cause

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