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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. shower — rain
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. current — of water
  5. last — final
  6. root — of a plant
  7. last — finally
  8. fall — to drop
  9. prune — to trim
  10. fall — to drop
  11. current — happening now
  12. root — the cause
  13. root — of a word
  14. last — to go on
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. cold — not warm
  17. stem — to come from
  18. current — electric
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — an illness
  21. prune — to trim
  22. fall — the season
  23. shower — to wash
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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