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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: lie · fall · board · cell · patient · root · pound · clip

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. clip — a video
  3. cell — in biology
  4. fall — the season
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. fall — to drop
  7. clip — for paper
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. cell — a phone
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. lie — to recline
  13. root — the cause
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. board — to get on
  17. fall — to drop
  18. pound — a weight
  19. board — a committee
  20. clip — to cut
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. root — of a plant
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. patient — a sick person

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