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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: march · shower · rush · kick · court · stem · track · root

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. shower — rain
  3. track — a path
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. kick — in football
  7. stem — to come from
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. root — of a plant
  10. court — for sport
  11. track — to keep track
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. rush — hurry
  14. root — the cause
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. march — the month
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. shower — to wash
  20. track — a song
  21. court — of law
  22. march — music
  23. march — the month
  24. court — of a king

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