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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: cold · stem · root · plane · scale · wax · date · rest

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. scale — in music
  3. wax — to grow
  4. rest — a break
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. plane — a tool
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. stem — to come from
  10. root — of a word
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. rest — what's left
  13. cold — not warm
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. rest — what's left
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cold — an illness
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. date — the fruit
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. root — the cause
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. scale — size or range

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