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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 116 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: calf · content · bulb · stock · drill · root · pass · saw

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. root — of a word
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. stock — shares
  5. stock — goods
  6. content — happy
  7. drill — a practice
  8. root — of a plant
  9. drill — army training
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. pass — a permit
  12. saw — the tool
  13. content — the amount
  14. saw — the tool
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. bulb — for light
  18. root — the cause
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. drill — the tool
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bulb — of a plant

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