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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: shower · cap · chair · squash · root · branch · pound · jam

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. cap — a lid
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. cap — of ice
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. shower — rain
  9. root — of a plant
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. branch — a division
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. cap — a hat
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. root — the cause
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. chair — a leader
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. pound — a weight
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. squash — to crush
  23. root — of a word
  24. squash — the sport

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