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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. tube — a container
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. hand — help
  5. hand — in cards
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. shower — rain
  8. present — a gift
  9. row — a line
  10. board — to get on
  11. mate — to breed
  12. board — a committee
  13. mate — a partner
  14. tube — the underground
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. mate — a friend
  17. staff — employees
  18. shower — to wash
  19. present — the time now
  20. staff — employees
  21. staff — a stick
  22. present — there
  23. row — to paddle
  24. tube — in a tire

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