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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: root · shower · leaves · bore · rest · kick · chest · hand

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. kick — in football
  3. rest — what's left
  4. chest — of your body
  5. root — the cause
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. rest — what's left
  9. root — of a plant
  10. hand — in cards
  11. bore — to drill
  12. chest — a box
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. shower — rain
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. shower — to wash
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. bore — to tire
  19. hand — help
  20. chest — of your body
  21. rest — a break
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. leaves — of a tree

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