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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. snap — to click
  4. kid — to tease
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. kid — child
  7. shower — to wash
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. object — a thing
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. wind — moving air
  13. shower — rain
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. object — to protest
  16. bore — to tire
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. object — an aim
  19. bore — to drill
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. stem — to come from
  24. stem — of a plant

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