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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 116 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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. saw — the tool
  3. saw — the tool
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. wind — moving air
  8. cell — a phone
  9. bore — to tire
  10. shower — rain
  11. ball — a dance
  12. shower — to wash
  13. tube — the underground
  14. bear — the animal
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. cell — in biology
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bore — to drill
  20. bear — the animal
  21. ball — a great time
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. tube — a container

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