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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: spell · face · present · root · branch · nail · tear · kid

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. root — the cause
  3. face — part of the head
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. spell — a short time
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. present — a gift
  8. present — there
  9. branch — a division
  10. face — to point toward
  11. kid — to tease
  12. spell — letters
  13. present — the time now
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — to rip
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. spell — magic
  18. tear — from crying
  19. face — to confront
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. root — of a plant
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. kid — child

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