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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: snap · date · wave · bore · face · arm · root · shower

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. date — the fruit
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. snap — to click
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. bore — to drill
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. root — of a plant
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. bore — to tire
  13. face — to point toward
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. face — to confront
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. shower — rain
  19. root — the cause
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. root — of a word
  22. face — part of the head
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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