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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. kid — child
  3. shower — to wash
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. staff — employees
  6. hand — in cards
  7. fall — the season
  8. cap — of ice
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — moving air
  11. shower — rain
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. hand — help
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pass — a permit
  16. fall — to drop
  17. cap — a lid
  18. staff — employees
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. staff — a stick
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. kid — to tease
  24. cap — a hat

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