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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  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 — a meteor shower
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. cold — not warm
  5. present — a gift
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. present — there
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. mate — a friend
  12. pitch — completely
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. present — the time now
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. mate — to breed
  17. mate — a partner
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. shower — to wash
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. cold — an illness
  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