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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. kid — to tease
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. shower — rain
  13. date — the fruit
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. shower — to wash
  16. kid — child
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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