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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. shower — to wash
  3. tube — the underground
  4. mine — for digging
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. sharp — clever
  7. tube — a container
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. stem — to come from
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bore — to drill
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. lie — to recline
  19. bore — to tire
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. wake — a trail
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. mine — belonging to me

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