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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: root · shower · nail · perch · fan · straw · lash · fork

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. perch — the fish
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. shower — to wash
  6. root — of a plant
  7. root — of a word
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. root — the cause
  15. shower — rain
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fork — in a road
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. perch — for a bird

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