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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bat — the animal
  4. tear — from crying
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. staff — employees
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. root — of a plant
  9. staff — employees
  10. kick — in football
  11. tear — from crying
  12. root — of a word
  13. bark — to shout
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. staff — a stick
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. root — the cause
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. wind — moving air
  21. tear — to rip
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. stem — to come from

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