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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: root · wind · cue · tear · cap · snap

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. cap — a lid
  4. root — of a plant
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cap — a hat
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. root — of a word
  9. tear — to rip
  10. root — the cause
  11. wind — moving air
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — from crying
  14. cue — a signal
  15. wind — moving air
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. cue — a hint
  18. cue — for pool

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