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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. kid — to tease
  4. shower — to wash
  5. current — happening now
  6. net — in sport
  7. tear — to rip
  8. kid — child
  9. band — a music group
  10. tear — from crying
  11. net — for catching
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. tear — from crying
  14. current — electric
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. band — a ring
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. current — of water
  20. net — after costs
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. sharp — clever
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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