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

Word bank: dip · stick · cell · root · deal · tear

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. tear — from crying
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. root — of a plant
  6. cell — a phone
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. root — the cause
  9. root — of a word
  10. dip — to sink
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tear — from crying
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. cell — in biology
  17. deal — to handle
  18. cell — in a prison

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