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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  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. cue — for pool
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. last — finally
  4. root — the cause
  5. fall — to drop
  6. last — to go on
  7. root — of a plant
  8. stem — to come from
  9. game — wild animals
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — an injury
  12. cue — a hint
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. cue — a signal
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — the season
  19. game — a match
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. last — final
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. root — of a word
  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