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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: shower · stand · cap · key · trunk · field · tear · foot

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. cap — of ice
  8. key — for a lock
  9. field — farmland
  10. cap — a hat
  11. key — the most important part
  12. shower — rain
  13. field — a subject
  14. foot — a measure
  15. stand — to bear
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. cap — a lid
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. field — for sport
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. key — in music
  23. tear — from crying
  24. foot — part of the body

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