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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: stem · fall · wound · club · season · root · perch · date

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. 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. stem — of a plant
  2. stem — to come from
  3. club — a group
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. season — in sport
  6. club — for dancing
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. perch — the fish
  11. season — of the year
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. date — the fruit
  14. club — for golf
  15. root — of a word
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wound — an injury
  18. fall — the season
  19. root — the cause
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. fall — to drop
  23. wound — an injury
  24. 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