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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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. stem — to come from
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. root — of a plant
  6. wound — an injury
  7. root — the cause
  8. rest — what's left
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. rest — a break
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. dip — to sink
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. shower — to wash
  17. wound — an injury
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. shower — rain
  21. rest — what's left
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. root — of a word
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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