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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. root — of a word
  3. cold — an illness
  4. foot — a measure
  5. spell — a short time
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. spell — letters
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. root — of a plant
  10. spell — magic
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. branch — a division
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. cold — not warm
  16. root — the cause
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. branch — of a tree

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