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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 120 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: chest · nail · row · degree · root · shower · can · cabinet

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. root — the cause
  3. can — a tin
  4. root — of a word
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. shower — to wash
  7. row — a line
  8. degree — an amount
  9. chest — of your body
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. chest — of your body
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. shower — rain
  16. degree — temperature
  17. can — to be able to
  18. can — a tin
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. row — to paddle
  23. degree — from a university
  24. root — of a plant

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