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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: key · root · present · craft · squash · clip · tear · cap

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. present — a gift
  3. craft — a skill
  4. key — the most important part
  5. root — of a word
  6. squash — the sport
  7. cap — a hat
  8. clip — for paper
  9. present — the time now
  10. root — the cause
  11. tear — from crying
  12. cap — a lid
  13. clip — to cut
  14. craft — boats
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. key — for a lock
  17. tear — from crying
  18. cap — of ice
  19. present — there
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. root — of a plant
  22. tear — to rip
  23. key — in music
  24. clip — a video

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