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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. wind — moving air
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. wind — moving air
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. bank — for money
  8. shower — to wash
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. bulb — for light
  11. kid — child
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. shower — rain
  14. rush — hurry
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. kick — in football
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. bank — for money
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bank — of a river

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