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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. march — music
  3. snap — to click
  4. root — the cause
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. march — the month
  8. content — happy
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. march — the month
  13. root — of a word
  14. root — of a plant
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. content — the amount
  23. shower — rain
  24. fan — a supporter

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