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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: fall · land · stick · rest · root · shower · racket · capital

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. fall — to drop
  3. shower — rain
  4. rest — what's left
  5. land — to come down
  6. rest — a break
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. capital — money
  10. fall — the season
  11. land — ground
  12. root — of a word
  13. fall — to drop
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. land — a country
  17. root — of a plant
  18. shower — to wash
  19. root — the cause
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. capital — a city
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — a loud noise

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