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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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Word bank
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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 · clip · snap · ground · date · wound · bound · deal

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. clip — for paper
  3. clip — to cut
  4. bound — certain
  5. ground — the earth
  6. ground — a position
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. snap — to click
  10. root — of a word
  11. ground — crushed
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. wound — an injury
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. root — of a plant
  16. deal — to handle
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. bound — tied together
  19. root — the cause
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. date — the fruit
  22. bound — obliged
  23. wound — an injury
  24. date — on the calendar

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