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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: snap · mine · stem · wound · root · press · shower · scale

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. root — the cause
  3. shower — to wash
  4. stem — to come from
  5. press — a publisher
  6. scale — in music
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. root — of a plant
  9. wound — an injury
  10. shower — rain
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. wound — an injury
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. root — of a word
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. press — to push
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. mine — for digging
  22. scale — size or range
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. press — newspapers

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