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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: stem · prune · rest · tear · arm · root · rock · clip

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. clip — to cut
  3. rock — a stone
  4. rock — music
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — to trim
  7. root — of a word
  8. root — the cause
  9. clip — for paper
  10. rest — what's left
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. stem — to come from
  14. rest — a break
  15. clip — a video
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. tear — from crying
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. root — of a plant
  20. rest — what's left
  21. tear — to rip
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. rock — to move gently

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