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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: degree · root · fine · patient · shower · hand · ball · rush

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. degree — an amount
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. degree — from a university
  6. root — of a plant
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. root — the cause
  9. ball — a great time
  10. hand — in cards
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. degree — temperature
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. ball — a dance
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. hand — help
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. fine — all right
  20. fine — high quality
  21. shower — to wash
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. shower — rain
  24. root — of a word

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