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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: kid · cell · stick · fall · stem · capital · bark · root

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. kid — to tease
  3. root — of a plant
  4. stem — to come from
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. cell — a phone
  8. cell — in biology
  9. capital — a city
  10. capital — money
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. fall — to drop
  13. root — of a word
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. root — the cause
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. kid — child
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. fall — the season
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. stem — a stem cell

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