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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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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. shower — to wash
  3. kid — to tease
  4. cap — a hat
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. capital — money
  7. capital — a city
  8. root — the cause
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. cap — a lid
  11. root — of a word
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. kick — in football
  15. bank — of a river
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. cap — of ice
  18. shower — rain
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. root — of a plant
  21. bank — for money
  22. bank — for money
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. kid — child

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