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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 116 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. shower — rain
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. kid — child
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. board — to get on
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. tear — from crying
  12. drill — the tool
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. drill — army training
  15. object — to protest
  16. object — a thing
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. kid — to tease
  19. shower — to wash
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — to rip
  22. object — an aim
  23. drill — a practice
  24. board — a committee

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