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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  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. shower — rain
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. shower — to wash
  5. fall — to drop
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. saw — the tool
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. season — of the year
  12. fall — the season
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. bark — to shout
  16. wind — moving air
  17. rash — hasty
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. saw — the tool
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. season — in sport
  22. fall — to drop
  23. season — to add flavour
  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