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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. shower — rain
  4. face — to point toward
  5. object — to protest
  6. spring — the season
  7. swing — in golf
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. swing — music
  11. row — to paddle
  12. swing — to play on
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. spring — of water
  16. lie — to recline
  17. face — part of the head
  18. face — to confront
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. object — an aim
  21. spring — a coil
  22. object — a thing
  23. row — a line
  24. coach — a trainer

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