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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: stick · wind · shower · root · ground · fall · club · march

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. fall — to drop
  4. march — the month
  5. root — of a plant
  6. shower — rain
  7. march — the month
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. shower — to wash
  10. club — for dancing
  11. ground — crushed
  12. club — for golf
  13. ground — the earth
  14. root — the cause
  15. ground — a position
  16. march — music
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. club — a group
  19. fall — to drop
  20. root — of a word
  21. fall — the season
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — moving air
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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