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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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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: shower · saw · season · bulb · patient · fork · branch · root

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  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. shower — to wash
  2. bulb — for light
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. season — in sport
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. root — of a plant
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. saw — the tool
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. season — of the year
  15. bulb — for light
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. branch — a division
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. saw — the tool
  21. shower — rain
  22. root — of a word
  23. fork — in a road
  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