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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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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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. stem — to come from
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. content — the amount
  9. clip — a video
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. root — of a word
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — from crying
  15. clip — to cut
  16. clip — for paper
  17. snap — to click
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. root — of a plant
  20. deal — to handle
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. root — the cause
  23. content — happy
  24. tear — to rip

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