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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: root · wind · cue · tear · cap · snap · lie · cold

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. cold — not warm
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. cap — of ice
  7. lie — to recline
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. root — of a plant
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. cap — a hat
  12. tear — from crying
  13. cue — for pool
  14. wind — moving air
  15. snap — to click
  16. root — the cause
  17. cue — a hint
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. cap — a lid
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cue — a signal
  22. cold — an illness
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — to rip

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