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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: bat · degree · mate · root · date · pass · lean · stock

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  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. stock — a soup base
  2. lean — to bend
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. degree — an amount
  5. mate — a partner
  6. degree — from a university
  7. mate — to breed
  8. stock — goods
  9. root — of a word
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. mate — a friend
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. root — of a plant
  15. pass — a permit
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. stock — shares
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. degree — temperature
  20. bat — the animal
  21. date — the fruit
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. lean — thin
  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