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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: jam · land · face · shower · root · clip · lie · march

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. root — the cause
  3. land — a country
  4. root — of a plant
  5. shower — to wash
  6. march — music
  7. clip — a video
  8. face — to point toward
  9. face — part of the head
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. land — ground
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. root — of a word
  15. shower — rain
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. march — the month
  18. lie — to recline
  19. face — to confront
  20. clip — to cut
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. clip — for paper
  23. march — the month
  24. land — to come down

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