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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: wake · bound · stick · shower · spring · cell · mug · root

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. root — of a word
  4. bound — obliged
  5. shower — to wash
  6. bound — certain
  7. mug — a face
  8. spring — of water
  9. spring — a coil
  10. root — the cause
  11. cell — in biology
  12. root — of a plant
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. spring — the season
  15. mug — a cup
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. bound — tied together
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — a phone
  24. mug — to rob

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