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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · lie · stem · march · bass · leaves · hand · root

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bass — low music
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. cold — an illness
  7. bass — the fish
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. hand — in cards
  12. march — the month
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. march — the month
  15. hand — help
  16. root — of a word
  17. root — of a plant
  18. cold — not warm
  19. march — music
  20. root — the cause
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. stem — to come from

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