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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. row — to paddle
  4. bank — of a river
  5. race — the arms race
  6. row — a line
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. race — humankind
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. bank — for money
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. race — a contest
  21. fork — in a road
  22. bank — for money
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. shower — rain

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