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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. shower — to wash
  3. row — a line
  4. shower — rain
  5. bear — the animal
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. cap — of ice
  9. bear — the animal
  10. chest — of your body
  11. lie — to recline
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. net — for catching
  15. cap — a lid
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. chest — a box
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. net — in sport
  20. row — to paddle
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. cap — a hat
  24. net — after costs

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