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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. root — of a word
  3. tear — from crying
  4. perch — the fish
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. rash — a series
  7. clip — to cut
  8. root — of a plant
  9. ground — crushed
  10. root — the cause
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. tear — from crying
  14. current — happening now
  15. rash — hasty
  16. ground — a position
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. clip — a video
  20. current — of water
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. tear — to rip
  23. clip — for paper
  24. current — electric

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