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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: clip · root · kid · pop · bank · tear · snap · coach

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. pop — to visit
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. bank — of a river
  6. clip — to cut
  7. tear — from crying
  8. kid — child
  9. clip — a video
  10. bank — for money
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. clip — for paper
  13. root — of a plant
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. bank — for money
  16. root — the cause
  17. tear — to rip
  18. root — of a word
  19. tear — from crying
  20. kid — to tease
  21. pop — music
  22. snap — to click
  23. pop — soda
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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