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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: game · suit · foot · pound · shower · root · fine · toast

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. fine — high quality
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. shower — to wash
  7. toast — bread
  8. suit — to fit
  9. game — a match
  10. suit — in cards
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. suit — clothes
  14. root — of a word
  15. pound — a weight
  16. fine — all right
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. root — the cause
  21. shower — rain
  22. root — of a plant
  23. game — wild animals
  24. foot — a measure

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