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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 116 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: kick · rest · clip · root · fork · rush · dip · cell

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. root — the cause
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. rest — what's left
  8. root — of a word
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. clip — a video
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. rest — a break
  14. rest — what's left
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. cell — a phone
  17. rush — hurry
  18. kick — in football
  19. cell — in biology
  20. root — of a plant
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — to cut
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. dip — to sink

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