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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. tube — the underground
  3. kid — to tease
  4. prune — to trim
  5. root — the cause
  6. prune — to trim
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. cue — a hint
  10. root — of a plant
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. stem — to come from
  13. cue — a signal
  14. spring — the season
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. root — of a word
  21. tube — a container
  22. spring — of water
  23. cue — for pool
  24. spring — a coil

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