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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. shower — rain
  4. club — for dancing
  5. ground — a position
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. stand — to bear
  8. hand — help
  9. dip — to sink
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. shower — to wash
  12. rule — government
  13. ground — the earth
  14. club — for golf
  15. club — a group
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. ground — crushed
  21. hand — in cards
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. rule — a law
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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