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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: fall · root · stick · bay · kid · cold · leaves · bear

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. root — of a plant
  5. root — of a word
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. kid — child
  10. bear — the animal
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. kid — to tease
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — the season
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bear — the animal
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. root — the cause
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cold — not warm

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