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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: branch · capital · mine · mark · row · ball · root · stock

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. mark — a trace
  4. stock — goods
  5. root — of a plant
  6. mine — for digging
  7. ball — a dance
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. capital — money
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. branch — a division
  13. row — to paddle
  14. root — of a word
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. row — a line
  17. mark — a grade
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. stock — shares
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. ball — a great time
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. root — the cause
  24. capital — a city

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