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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: deal · lie · root · coach · clip · craft · chest · cold

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. craft — a skill
  5. deal — to handle
  6. chest — a box
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. craft — boats
  9. clip — for paper
  10. chest — of your body
  11. lie — to recline
  12. cold — not warm
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — to cut
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. chest — of your body
  17. cold — an illness
  18. root — the cause
  19. root — of a word
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. deal — a big deal

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