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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. mug — to rob
  3. shower — rain
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. mug — a face
  6. bear — the animal
  7. root — the cause
  8. tear — to rip
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bear — the animal
  12. ground — a position
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. shower — to wash
  16. mug — a cup
  17. ground — the earth
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. tear — from crying
  21. root — of a word
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. ground — crushed
  24. root — of a plant

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