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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.

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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: drill · stem · stick · cold · bark · root · bore · net

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. bore — to tire
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. root — of a plant
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. bark — to shout
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. net — after costs
  11. drill — the tool
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. drill — a practice
  14. root — of a word
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. drill — army training
  17. net — in sport
  18. root — the cause
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. net — for catching
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. cold — an illness
  23. bore — to drill
  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