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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: kick · band · ground · trunk · lean · march · fall · shower

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. march — the month
  3. ground — the earth
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. band — a music group
  6. band — a ring
  7. fall — the season
  8. shower — rain
  9. shower — to wash
  10. kick — in football
  11. ground — crushed
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. lean — thin
  14. fall — to drop
  15. march — the month
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. fall — to drop
  18. ground — a position
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. march — music
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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