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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 120 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: patient · stem · root · cold · lash · snap · content · present

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. root — the cause
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. snap — to click
  7. root — of a plant
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. root — of a word
  10. content — the amount
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. present — there
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. content — happy
  16. stem — to come from
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. present — a gift
  19. present — the time now
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. cold — not warm
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. lash — an eyelash

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