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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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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: land · race · foot · fall · stick · patient · root · shower

  1. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a plant
  2. land — a country
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. race — humankind
  5. land — ground
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. land — to come down
  9. fall — to drop
  10. root — of a word
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. shower — to wash
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. fall — to drop
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. fall — the season
  18. race — a contest
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. shower — rain
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. race — the arms race
  23. foot — a measure
  24. root — the cause

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