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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. rush — hurry
  3. shower — to wash
  4. spring — a coil
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. board — to get on
  7. board — a committee
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. chest — of your body
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. dip — to sink
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. shower — rain
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. chest — a box
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. chest — of your body
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. spring — of water
  24. spring — the season

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