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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.

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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: root · shower · bank · kick · racket · wave · tear · lie

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. root — of a word
  3. tear — to rip
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. bank — for money
  13. tear — from crying
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. lie — to recline
  17. bank — for money
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. kick — in football
  20. shower — rain
  21. root — the cause
  22. tear — from crying
  23. root — of a plant
  24. bank — of a river

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