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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. root — of a word
  8. march — the month
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. band — a music group
  11. bulb — for light
  12. band — a ring
  13. stem — to come from
  14. root — of a plant
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. date — the fruit
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. march — music
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. root — the cause
  23. march — the month
  24. stem — a stem cell

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