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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 116 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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. face — part of the head
  5. tear — from crying
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. shower — rain
  8. game — a match
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. rush — hurry
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. face — to confront
  14. face — to point toward
  15. tear — from crying
  16. game — wild animals
  17. bass — low music
  18. bass — the fish
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. dip — to sink
  22. tear — to rip
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. game — a kind of play

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