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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: tube · ground · club · pop · shower · band · lie · root

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. band — a music group
  3. lie — to recline
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. tube — the underground
  6. ground — the earth
  7. shower — to wash
  8. tube — a container
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. club — for golf
  11. club — a group
  12. pop — to visit
  13. root — the cause
  14. shower — rain
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. pop — soda
  18. club — for dancing
  19. ground — crushed
  20. ground — a position
  21. pop — music
  22. root — of a plant
  23. band — a ring
  24. lie — an untruth

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