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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 · pit · capital · key · safe · leaves · root · kid

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  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. leaves — to go away
  2. shower — rain
  3. pit — in a race
  4. root — of a word
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. key — in music
  7. key — the most important part
  8. capital — a city
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. root — of a plant
  12. kid — child
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. kid — to tease
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. shower — to wash
  18. key — for a lock
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. pit — a hole
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. capital — money
  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