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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. rush — hurry
  5. clip — for paper
  6. bear — the animal
  7. wind — moving air
  8. clip — to cut
  9. spell — a short time
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. clip — a video
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. firm — steady
  15. spell — letters
  16. spell — magic
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. firm — a company
  20. shower — rain
  21. firm — decided
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. bear — the animal
  24. wind — moving air

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