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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. wind — moving air
  4. suit — clothes
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. shower — rain
  9. object — to protest
  10. board — a committee
  11. object — an aim
  12. cold — an illness
  13. board — to get on
  14. suit — to fit
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. dip — to sink
  19. cold — not warm
  20. object — a thing
  21. suit — in cards
  22. wind — moving air
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. wind — to turn a key

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