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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. band — a ring
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. clip — a video
  8. date — the fruit
  9. root — of a plant
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. clip — to cut
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. content — happy
  19. band — a music group
  20. clip — for paper
  21. content — the amount
  22. root — the cause
  23. root — of a word
  24. date — on the calendar

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