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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. shower — rain
  3. row — a line
  4. fine — high quality
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bear — the animal
  8. bear — the animal
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. cold — not warm
  11. row — to paddle
  12. cold — an illness
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. foot — a measure
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. shower — to wash
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. fine — all right
  24. kick — in football

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