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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 120 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 · cabinet · last · mate · root · spell · content · branch

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. root — of a plant
  4. mate — to breed
  5. last — to go on
  6. spell — letters
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. last — finally
  9. content — happy
  10. last — final
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. mate — a friend
  15. stock — goods
  16. content — the amount
  17. stock — shares
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. root — the cause
  21. spell — magic
  22. root — of a word
  23. mate — a partner
  24. spell — a short time

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