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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. root — the cause
  4. last — final
  5. spring — a coil
  6. race — the arms race
  7. stem — to come from
  8. rule — government
  9. race — a contest
  10. spring — the season
  11. root — of a word
  12. rule — a law
  13. last — to go on
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. root — of a plant
  16. bore — to drill
  17. pitch — completely
  18. race — humankind
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. spring — of water
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. bore — to tire
  23. last — finally
  24. rule — to rule out

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