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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bank · cold · season · mug · clip · dip · lash · root

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. clip — for paper
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. season — in sport
  5. clip — a video
  6. cold — not warm
  7. mug — to rob
  8. season — of the year
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. mug — a face
  11. bank — for money
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. cold — an illness
  14. dip — to sink
  15. root — of a word
  16. mug — a cup
  17. bank — of a river
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bank — for money
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. root — of a plant
  23. root — the cause
  24. season — to add flavour

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