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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: shower · foot · hand · root · object · game · stick · last

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. game — wild animals
  4. game — a match
  5. object — an aim
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. shower — rain
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. object — a thing
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. last — final
  13. hand — in cards
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. root — the cause
  16. last — finally
  17. object — to protest
  18. root — of a word
  19. last — to go on
  20. root — of a plant
  21. foot — a measure
  22. hand — help
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. shower — to wash

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