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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: net · wake · shower · tear · hide · capital · root · charge

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. net — after costs
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. charge — a price
  6. net — for catching
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. tear — from crying
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. capital — a city
  11. root — of a word
  12. root — the cause
  13. root — of a plant
  14. tear — from crying
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. capital — money
  17. shower — to wash
  18. shower — rain
  19. wake — a trail
  20. tear — to rip
  21. charge — in control
  22. net — in sport
  23. charge — electricity
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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