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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. wound — an injury
  3. cap — a lid
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. dip — to sink
  6. drill — army training
  7. cap — of ice
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. charge — in control
  11. wind — moving air
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. wake — a trail
  14. charge — a price
  15. drill — the tool
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. shower — rain
  18. cap — a hat
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. wind — moving air
  22. drill — a practice
  23. charge — electricity
  24. wound — an injury

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