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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. suit — to fit
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. land — to come down
  5. court — for sport
  6. wound — an injury
  7. court — of law
  8. stem — to come from
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. branch — a division
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. suit — in cards
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. land — a country
  18. root — of a plant
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. court — of a king
  21. root — the cause
  22. wound — an injury
  23. land — ground
  24. suit — clothes

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