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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: hide · sharp · march · clip · root · spring · dip · pitcher

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. root — of a word
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. dip — to sink
  6. spring — a coil
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. clip — a video
  10. sharp — clever
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. clip — to cut
  14. spring — the season
  15. spring — of water
  16. march — music
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. march — the month
  19. march — the month
  20. clip — for paper
  21. root — the cause
  22. root — of a plant
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. dip — to dunk

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