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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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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: tear · coach · root · march · chest · board · pound · shower

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. root — of a word
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. shower — rain
  5. root — of a plant
  6. root — the cause
  7. chest — a box
  8. pound — a weight
  9. tear — to rip
  10. march — the month
  11. tear — from crying
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — to wash
  14. march — music
  15. chest — of your body
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. chest — of your body
  20. march — the month
  21. board — to get on
  22. tear — from crying
  23. board — a committee
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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