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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
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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: present · clip · tube · lean · field · root · club · hide

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. tube — a container
  3. root — of a plant
  4. root — of a word
  5. field — for sport
  6. clip — for paper
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. root — the cause
  9. present — a gift
  10. club — a group
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. clip — to cut
  13. club — for golf
  14. field — farmland
  15. lean — thin
  16. club — for dancing
  17. field — a subject
  18. lean — to bend
  19. tube — the underground
  20. present — there
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. clip — a video
  24. hide — animal skin

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