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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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Word bank
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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: pop · wake · tube · root · fall · shower · vault · stick

  1. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. root — the cause
  2. pop — music
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. shower — to wash
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. tube — a container
  8. pop — to visit
  9. shower — rain
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. root — of a plant
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. pop — soda
  15. fall — to drop
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. vault — a safe
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. tube — the underground
  21. fall — the season
  22. root — of a word
  23. fall — to drop
  24. wake — a trail

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