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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: roll · tear · root · ground · bulb · pass · present · cell

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. present — the time now
  3. root — of a plant
  4. present — there
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. present — a gift
  7. roll — a cake
  8. cell — a phone
  9. bulb — for light
  10. cell — in biology
  11. ground — crushed
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. ground — the earth
  14. tear — to rip
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. root — of a word
  17. root — the cause
  18. ground — a position
  19. bulb — for light
  20. tear — from crying
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. pass — a permit
  23. roll — a list
  24. bulb — 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