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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 120 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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. season — in sport
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. rash — hasty
  6. clip — a video
  7. root — of a plant
  8. present — the time now
  9. present — a gift
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. clip — to cut
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. root — the cause
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. clip — for paper
  20. root — of a word
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. present — there
  23. rash — a series
  24. season — of the year

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