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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 120 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: ground · lie · bound · tear · root · cold · mug · band

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. tear — to rip
  3. mug — a face
  4. bound — certain
  5. ground — crushed
  6. cold — an illness
  7. ground — a position
  8. tear — from crying
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. bound — obliged
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. root — the cause
  13. band — a ring
  14. mug — to rob
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mug — a cup
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. band — a music group
  19. bound — tied together
  20. root — of a word
  21. cold — not warm
  22. ground — the earth
  23. root — of a plant
  24. lie — to recline

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