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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: root · roll · degree · craft · wound · last · bowl · stock

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. wound — an injury
  3. last — to go on
  4. stock — goods
  5. roll — a cake
  6. craft — a skill
  7. degree — from a university
  8. wound — an injury
  9. root — of a plant
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. root — the cause
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. root — of a word
  17. stock — shares
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. degree — temperature
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. last — finally
  22. roll — a list
  23. craft — boats
  24. last — final

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