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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 116 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: scale · shower · mate · wind · root · mug · march · kick

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. mug — a face
  3. march — music
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. mate — a partner
  6. wind — moving air
  7. march — the month
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. mate — to breed
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. root — of a plant
  12. mug — a cup
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. scale — size or range
  15. scale — in music
  16. mate — a friend
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. shower — rain
  19. root — of a word
  20. march — the month
  21. shower — to wash
  22. mug — to rob
  23. root — the cause
  24. wind — moving air

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