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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. rush — hurry
  3. content — the amount
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. shower — to wash
  7. cap — of ice
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. can — to be able to
  10. mine — for digging
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. spell — letters
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. can — a tin
  15. can — a tin
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. spell — magic
  18. cap — a hat
  19. content — happy
  20. dip — to sink
  21. spell — a short time
  22. cap — a lid
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. dip — to dunk

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