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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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468
Word bank
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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. root — of a word
  5. root — of a plant
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. cue — a signal
  9. fork — in a road
  10. cue — a hint
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. lean — thin
  17. clip — to cut
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. cue — for pool
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. root — the cause
  23. clip — for paper
  24. clip — a video

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