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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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Word bank
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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: spring · stem · mark · root · snap · rush

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. root — the cause
  4. root — of a word
  5. stem — to come from
  6. spring — the season
  7. rush — hurry
  8. spring — of water
  9. mark — a trace
  10. spring — a coil
  11. snap — to click
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. mark — a grade
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. root — of a plant

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