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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 120 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 surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. lie — to recline
  5. shower — to wash
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. rock — music
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. shower — rain
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — not warm
  14. rock — a stone
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pass — a permit
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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