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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. fine — high quality
  5. squash — to crush
  6. rest — a break
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. squash — the sport
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. pop — to visit
  11. fine — all right
  12. rest — what's left
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. rest — what's left
  19. stem — to come from
  20. pop — soda
  21. root — of a plant
  22. pop — music
  23. sharp — clever
  24. root — the cause

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