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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. rash — hasty
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. current — of water
  8. march — the month
  9. stem — to come from
  10. root — of a word
  11. march — music
  12. current — electric
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. march — the month
  15. net — after costs
  16. net — in sport
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. rash — a series
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. root — of a plant
  21. net — for catching
  22. current — happening now
  23. kick — in football
  24. root — the cause

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