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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 120 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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. wind — moving air
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bark — to shout
  7. scale — size or range
  8. wind — moving air
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. chest — a box
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. chest — of your body
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. scale — in music
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. bear — the animal
  21. shower — to wash
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bark — of a tree

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