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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. shower — rain
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. bound — tied together
  7. last — final
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. hand — help
  11. hand — in cards
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. pound — a weight
  14. bass — low music
  15. last — to go on
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. bound — obliged
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. wake — a trail
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. bass — the fish
  23. bound — certain
  24. last — finally

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