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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. track — a path
  3. root — the cause
  4. perch — the fish
  5. root — of a plant
  6. bound — obliged
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. game — a match
  9. game — wild animals
  10. wind — moving air
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. wind — moving air
  13. track — a song
  14. stem — to come from
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. root — of a word
  17. bound — certain
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. track — to keep track
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. bound — tied together

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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