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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 116 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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. root — of a plant
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. season — in sport
  7. root — the cause
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. root — of a word
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. stem — to come from
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. season — of the year
  17. saw — the tool
  18. pitch — completely
  19. saw — the tool
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. mark — a trace
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. mark — a grade

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