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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. saw — the tool
  3. root — of a word
  4. root — the cause
  5. stem — to come from
  6. root — of a plant
  7. saw — the tool
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. row — a line
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. row — to paddle
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. prune — to trim
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. cell — a phone
  21. mate — a friend
  22. cell — in biology
  23. mate — a partner
  24. prune — to trim

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