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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 116 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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. object — to protest
  4. shower — to wash
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. shower — rain
  7. tear — from crying
  8. wake — a trail
  9. root — the cause
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. bass — the fish
  13. tear — from crying
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. root — of a word
  17. tear — to rip
  18. object — a thing
  19. bass — low music
  20. mine — for digging
  21. root — of a plant
  22. stem — to come from
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. bass — the instrument

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