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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. cold — an illness
  4. root — of a plant
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. root — of a word
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. cold — not warm
  11. mine — for digging
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. root — the cause
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. court — for sport
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. stand — to bear
  22. court — of a king
  23. stem — to come from
  24. court — of law

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