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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. shower — to wash
  4. pop — to visit
  5. kid — child
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. rash — a series
  9. shower — rain
  10. spring — of water
  11. spring — a coil
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. kid — to tease
  14. court — of law
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. spring — the season
  18. pop — soda
  19. court — for sport
  20. court — of a king
  21. rash — hasty
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. lie — to recline
  24. pop — music

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