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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. fine — high quality
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. kid — child
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. present — the time now
  7. fine — all right
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. fork — in a road
  10. kid — to tease
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. present — a gift
  14. perch — the fish
  15. present — there
  16. chest — of your body
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. chest — a box
  19. shower — to wash
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. chest — of your body
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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