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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: squash · root · content · pop · shower · pitcher · rule · land

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. squash — to crush
  5. land — a country
  6. rule — a law
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. rule — government
  9. pop — soda
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. root — the cause
  14. shower — rain
  15. pop — to visit
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. shower — to wash
  18. content — the amount
  19. root — of a plant
  20. land — ground
  21. root — of a word
  22. land — to come down
  23. pop — music
  24. content — happy

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