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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. mug — a face
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — not warm
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cold — an illness
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. drill — army training
  15. lean — thin
  16. drill — the tool
  17. lean — to bend
  18. mug — to rob
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. shower — rain
  21. drill — a practice
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. mug — a cup
  24. shower — to wash

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