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

Word bank: object · root · bank · band · row · cold · shower · temple

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. bank — for money
  3. root — of a plant
  4. bank — of a river
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. shower — to wash
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. row — to paddle
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. row — a line
  11. cold — an illness
  12. object — to protest
  13. band — a music group
  14. band — a ring
  15. object — an aim
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. cold — not warm
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. root — the cause
  21. bank — for money
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. object — a thing
  24. shower — rain

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