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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: spell · rule · shower · root · present · lash · cold · pitch

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. rule — a law
  4. root — the cause
  5. root — of a plant
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. spell — letters
  9. present — a gift
  10. shower — to wash
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. shower — rain
  13. cold — not warm
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. spell — magic
  17. pitch — completely
  18. rule — government
  19. spell — a short time
  20. present — there
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. cold — an illness
  23. root — of a word
  24. present — the time now

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