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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: stem · rule · game · shower · wound · ground · calf · root

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. rule — government
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — an injury
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. game — a match
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. ground — the earth
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. shower — to wash
  15. shower — rain
  16. game — wild animals
  17. rule — a law
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. root — of a word
  21. root — of a plant
  22. root — the cause
  23. ground — a position
  24. stem — to come from

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