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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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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: pop · wound · date · root · kid · clip · lie · stem

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. root — the cause
  4. clip — to cut
  5. wound — an injury
  6. clip — a video
  7. wound — an injury
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. kid — to tease
  10. pop — soda
  11. root — of a plant
  12. pop — to visit
  13. stem — to come from
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — the fruit
  16. root — of a word
  17. clip — for paper
  18. pop — music
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. lie — to recline
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. stem — a stem cell

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