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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: clip · hide · root · season · snap · net · band · degree

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. season — of the year
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. net — in sport
  5. net — after costs
  6. net — for catching
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. root — of a plant
  11. root — the cause
  12. root — of a word
  13. clip — for paper
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. degree — from a university
  16. season — in sport
  17. degree — an amount
  18. band — a music group
  19. degree — temperature
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. snap — to click
  22. band — a ring
  23. clip — to cut
  24. clip — a video

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