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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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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: chest · stem · race · rule · root · calf · branch · can

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. branch — a division
  5. root — of a word
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. race — a contest
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. rule — government
  10. root — of a plant
  11. chest — of your body
  12. can — to be able to
  13. chest — a box
  14. rule — a law
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. can — a tin
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. can — a tin
  20. chest — of your body
  21. stem — to come from
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. race — the arms race
  24. root — the cause

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