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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. shower — to wash
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. snap — to click
  5. tube — the underground
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. tube — a container
  9. band — a ring
  10. bound — certain
  11. lean — to bend
  12. branch — a division
  13. lean — thin
  14. band — a music group
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bound — tied together
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. bound — obliged
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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