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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 sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  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. wind — to turn a key
  3. net — after costs
  4. ground — crushed
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. kick — in football
  8. ground — the earth
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. mark — a grade
  11. net — in sport
  12. wind — moving air
  13. cap — a lid
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. ground — a position
  16. wind — moving air
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. cap — of ice
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. cap — a hat
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. mark — a trace
  23. net — for catching
  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