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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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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bank — of a river
  4. race — a contest
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. root — of a plant
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. stem — to come from
  10. bank — for money
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. race — the arms race
  15. cold — not warm
  16. race — humankind
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. root — the cause
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. bank — for money
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. root — of a word
  24. cold — an illness

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