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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 hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. hand — help
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. craft — a skill
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. ground — a position
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. shower — to wash
  14. dip — to sink
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — an injury
  17. ground — crushed
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. ground — the earth
  20. hand — in cards
  21. shower — rain
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. craft — boats
  24. dip — a sauce

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