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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. bass — the fish
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. spell — a short time
  9. rash — hasty
  10. bore — to drill
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. spell — magic
  14. snap — to click
  15. bore — to tire
  16. bass — low music
  17. spell — letters
  18. rash — a series
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — rain
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. bore — gave birth

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