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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: bear · root · pound · lean · cold · hide

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. bear — the animal
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. root — the cause
  6. lean — to bend
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. cold — an illness
  10. cold — not warm
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. lean — thin
  14. root — of a plant
  15. bear — the animal
  16. pound — a weight
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. root — of a word

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