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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 · mate · wave · perch · wound · mine · stem · root

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. root — of a word
  4. spring — a coil
  5. mate — to breed
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. wound — an injury
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. mate — a partner
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. stem — to come from
  12. perch — the fish
  13. root — of a plant
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. mate — a friend
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. spring — the season
  21. root — the cause
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. mine — for digging

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