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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 116 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: root · coach · stem · squash · pitch · cold · tear · march

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. root — the cause
  3. tear — to rip
  4. stem — to come from
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. march — music
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cold — an illness
  11. tear — from crying
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. squash — to crush
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. march — the month
  16. pitch — completely
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. root — of a word
  19. march — the month
  20. squash — the sport
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. tear — from crying
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. cold — the Cold War

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