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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. game — wild animals
  4. root — of a plant
  5. board — to get on
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. season — in sport
  11. root — the cause
  12. chest — a box
  13. band — a ring
  14. season — of the year
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. game — a match
  17. stem — to come from
  18. root — of a word
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. band — a music group
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chest — of your body
  23. board — a committee
  24. season — to add flavour

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