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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 · can · pop · field · swing · scale · court

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. field — for sport
  3. field — a subject
  4. root — of a word
  5. stock — shares
  6. root — of a plant
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. can — a tin
  9. can — a tin
  10. scale — size or range
  11. swing — to play on
  12. pop — music
  13. swing — music
  14. scale — in music
  15. pop — soda
  16. field — farmland
  17. root — the cause
  18. pop — to visit
  19. court — for sport
  20. can — to be able to
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. stock — goods
  23. swing — in golf
  24. court — of law

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