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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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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: file · board · shower · march · pitcher · date · patient · root

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. date — the fruit
  4. board — to get on
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. march — the month
  7. root — the cause
  8. file — a tool
  9. file — a line of people
  10. file — a document
  11. shower — rain
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. board — a committee
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. march — the month
  17. root — of a plant
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. shower — to wash
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. march — music
  24. patient — a sick person

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