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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bass — low music
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. bass — the fish
  7. lie — to recline
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. swing — in golf
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. land — a country
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. land — to come down
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. swing — music
  18. swing — to play on
  19. file — a line of people
  20. shower — to wash
  21. file — a tool
  22. land — ground
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. file — a document

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