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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 116 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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. root — of a plant
  4. spring — the season
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. root — the cause
  7. spring — of water
  8. saw — the tool
  9. spring — a coil
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. saw — the tool
  14. branch — a division
  15. root — of a word
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. mine — for digging
  21. stem — to come from
  22. bat — the animal
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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