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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: land · last · ruler · mate · root · clip · stem · wave

  1. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. clip — a video
  3. mate — a partner
  4. last — final
  5. stem — to come from
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. root — of a word
  8. last — finally
  9. root — the cause
  10. mate — to breed
  11. land — ground
  12. clip — to cut
  13. last — to go on
  14. root — of a plant
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. land — to come down
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. clip — for paper
  21. land — a country
  22. mate — a friend
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. stem — 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