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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 116 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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. clip — a video
  4. lie — to recline
  5. degree — an amount
  6. spell — letters
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. clip — for paper
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. spell — a short time
  12. degree — temperature
  13. root — the cause
  14. tube — the underground
  15. tear — to rip
  16. degree — from a university
  17. tube — a container
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — from crying
  20. root — of a plant
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. spell — magic
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. clip — to cut

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