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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. cold — an illness
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. cold — not warm
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. last — to go on
  13. tube — the underground
  14. shower — rain
  15. tube — a container
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. dip — to sink
  19. last — finally
  20. last — final
  21. shower — to wash
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. snap — to click

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