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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 116 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: pound · patient · spring · safe · root · stick · content · shower

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. root — of a plant
  5. content — the amount
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. shower — to wash
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. shower — rain
  12. root — of a word
  13. root — the cause
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. spring — a coil
  16. pound — a weight
  17. content — happy
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. spring — the season
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. spring — of water
  24. safe — a strongbox

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