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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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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: root · bowl · key · shower · pop · cell · foot · rule

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. pop — soda
  5. cell — in biology
  6. rule — government
  7. key — in music
  8. pop — music
  9. pop — to visit
  10. shower — rain
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. rule — a law
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. root — the cause
  17. cell — a phone
  18. key — the most important part
  19. shower — to wash
  20. root — of a plant
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. key — for a lock
  24. foot — a measure

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