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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. land — ground
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. file — a tool
  6. shower — rain
  7. file — a document
  8. land — to come down
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. spring — of water
  11. shower — to wash
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. file — a line of people
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. object — to protest
  18. object — an aim
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. land — a country
  21. spring — the season
  22. object — a thing
  23. spring — a coil
  24. coach — a trainer

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