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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. mark — a trace
  3. tube — the underground
  4. scale — size or range
  5. season — in sport
  6. season — of the year
  7. mark — a grade
  8. tube — a container
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. scale — in music
  11. pop — soda
  12. wound — an injury
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. staff — employees
  17. pop — to visit
  18. staff — employees
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. pop — music
  21. staff — a stick
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. shower — rain
  24. wound — an injury

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