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

Word bank: safe · leaves · pitcher · stem · tear · roll · ground · shower

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. shower — to wash
  4. roll — a cake
  5. roll — a list
  6. ground — crushed
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. ground — the earth
  13. tear — from crying
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. shower — rain
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. tear — from crying
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. stem — to come from
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. tear — to rip
  24. ground — a position

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