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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. ball — a great time
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. file — a document
  5. rush — hurry
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. drill — a practice
  9. file — a line of people
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. file — a tool
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. ball — a dance
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. drill — the tool
  17. band — a music group
  18. board — to get on
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. band — a ring
  22. board — a committee
  23. shower — to wash
  24. drill — army training

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