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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. spring — a coil
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. chest — a box
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. shower — rain
  8. degree — temperature
  9. chest — of your body
  10. degree — from a university
  11. degree — an amount
  12. chest — of your body
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. band — a music group
  15. bore — to tire
  16. spring — the season
  17. spring — of water
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. band — a ring
  22. bore — to drill
  23. stock — goods
  24. stock — shares

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