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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. tear — from crying
  3. bass — low music
  4. cue — for pool
  5. degree — an amount
  6. shower — rain
  7. tear — to rip
  8. degree — from a university
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. bass — the fish
  11. degree — temperature
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. shower — to wash
  15. bank — for money
  16. bank — for money
  17. cue — a signal
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. bank — of a river
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. tear — from crying

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