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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: wound · bay · march · chip · root · drill · shower · fan

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. chip — to eat
  4. root — the cause
  5. root — of a plant
  6. march — the month
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. chip — for betting
  10. drill — army training
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. wound — an injury
  14. drill — a practice
  15. march — the month
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. march — music
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. shower — to wash
  22. shower — rain
  23. root — of a word
  24. drill — the tool

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