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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: stem · wound · staff · wind · mate · root

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. root — of a plant
  3. staff — a stick
  4. root — the cause
  5. mate — a friend
  6. mate — a partner
  7. staff — employees
  8. stem — to come from
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. wind — moving air
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. wound — an injury
  14. staff — employees
  15. root — of a word
  16. mate — to breed
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — to turn a key

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