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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: bowl · roll · drill · stock · spring · root · wind · present

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. present — there
  4. stock — shares
  5. wind — moving air
  6. drill — a practice
  7. root — of a plant
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. spring — a coil
  10. roll — a list
  11. spring — of water
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wind — moving air
  15. present — a gift
  16. stock — goods
  17. root — the cause
  18. roll — a cake
  19. root — of a word
  20. present — the time now
  21. spring — the season
  22. drill — the tool
  23. drill — army training
  24. roll — on a roll

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