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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  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. clip — a video
  2. rush — hurry
  3. tear — to rip
  4. root — of a plant
  5. clip — for paper
  6. hand — help
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. rest — what's left
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. root — the cause
  11. date — the fruit
  12. tear — from crying
  13. dip — to sink
  14. tear — from crying
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. rest — what's left
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. hand — in cards
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. rest — a break
  23. root — of a word
  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