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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: land · bore · date · wound · charge · shower · plane · root

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. land — a country
  3. plane — a tool
  4. date — the fruit
  5. shower — to wash
  6. wound — an injury
  7. land — ground
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. bore — to tire
  11. root — the cause
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. charge — electricity
  15. root — of a plant
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. shower — rain
  18. wound — an injury
  19. land — to come down
  20. root — of a word
  21. charge — a price
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. charge — in control
  24. bore — to drill

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