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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. root — of a word
  3. shower — rain
  4. cold — not warm
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. board — to get on
  7. bank — of a river
  8. bound — tied together
  9. shower — to wash
  10. bound — obliged
  11. bound — certain
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. club — for dancing
  14. cold — an illness
  15. bank — for money
  16. bank — for money
  17. board — a committee
  18. root — the cause
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. squash — to crush
  21. squash — the sport
  22. club — a group
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. root — of a plant

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