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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. march — the month
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. hand — help
  9. lie — to recline
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. chest — of your body
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chair — a leader
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. march — the month
  17. march — music
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. shower — to wash
  21. hand — in cards
  22. chest — a box
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. lie — an untruth

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