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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 120 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: clip · chip · field · shower · bass · rock · root · lean

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. field — for sport
  3. root — of a plant
  4. root — the cause
  5. field — farmland
  6. lean — to bend
  7. clip — a video
  8. bass — low music
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. chip — for betting
  12. rock — a stone
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. rock — music
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. field — a subject
  17. lean — thin
  18. clip — for paper
  19. shower — rain
  20. clip — to cut
  21. shower — to wash
  22. root — of a word
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. chip — to eat

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