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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 124 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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. fall — to drop
  5. board — a committee
  6. shower — to wash
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. spring — of water
  9. shower — rain
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. spring — the season
  14. can — a tin
  15. fall — to drop
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. can — to be able to
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. board — to get on
  21. can — a tin
  22. rash — hasty
  23. spring — a coil
  24. rash — a series

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