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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. mate — a partner
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. fine — all right
  5. game — a match
  6. game — wild animals
  7. row — to paddle
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. row — a line
  10. fine — high quality
  11. mate — to breed
  12. shower — to wash
  13. stock — goods
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. kick — in football
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. stock — shares
  24. mate — a friend

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