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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 · spell · last · patient · ground · root · mouse

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. ground — the earth
  3. last — to go on
  4. clip — a video
  5. spell — a short time
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. spell — letters
  12. root — of a plant
  13. clip — to cut
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. ground — a position
  16. root — of a word
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. clip — for paper
  20. ground — crushed
  21. last — finally
  22. root — the cause
  23. spell — magic
  24. last — final

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