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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. cold — not warm
  3. mine — for digging
  4. spring — the season
  5. bank — for money
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. cold — an illness
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. tube — a container
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. spring — of water
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. bank — for money
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. bank — of a river
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. tube — the underground
  23. spring — a coil
  24. shower — to wash

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