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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 · ball · fall · wave · hand · cap · shower · perch

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. hand — help
  3. ball — a great time
  4. fall — the season
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. cap — a lid
  7. root — the cause
  8. cap — a hat
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — to drop
  12. shower — rain
  13. cap — of ice
  14. ball — a dance
  15. root — of a plant
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. shower — to wash
  21. hand — in cards
  22. root — of a word
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. perch — the fish

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