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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: bass · bat · tear · march · rule · stem · root · press

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. tear — from crying
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. rule — government
  7. bat — the animal
  8. root — the cause
  9. tear — to rip
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. march — the month
  13. press — to push
  14. bass — the fish
  15. rule — a law
  16. root — of a word
  17. press — newspapers
  18. march — music
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. root — of a plant
  21. march — the month
  22. press — a publisher
  23. stem — to come from
  24. bass — low music

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