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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: march · prune · stock · pound · wind · temple · spell · root

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wind — moving air
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. root — the cause
  5. pound — a weight
  6. march — the month
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. stock — goods
  9. prune — to trim
  10. wind — moving air
  11. spell — a short time
  12. spell — magic
  13. stock — shares
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. spell — letters
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. root — of a plant
  19. root — of a word
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. march — music
  22. prune — to trim
  23. march — the month
  24. temple — a place of worship

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