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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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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 · fork · wake · straw · shower · clip · firm · capital

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. fork — in a road
  4. shower — rain
  5. root — the cause
  6. capital — money
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. capital — a city
  9. shower — to wash
  10. wake — a trail
  11. firm — a company
  12. clip — for paper
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. firm — steady
  17. clip — a video
  18. root — of a word
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. clip — to cut
  22. firm — decided
  23. root — of a plant
  24. wake — before a funeral

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