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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. tear — from crying
  3. root — the cause
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. pop — music
  6. pop — to visit
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. cell — in biology
  9. stem — to come from
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. root — of a word
  12. tear — to rip
  13. root — of a plant
  14. squash — the sport
  15. cap — of ice
  16. cell — a phone
  17. cap — a hat
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. pop — soda
  20. squash — to crush
  21. cap — a lid
  22. swing — music
  23. tear — from crying
  24. swing — in golf

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