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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. can — a tin
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. shower — to wash
  5. chest — a box
  6. rush — hurry
  7. chest — of your body
  8. can — to be able to
  9. wind — moving air
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. net — after costs
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. chest — of your body
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. net — for catching
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. can — a tin
  19. shower — rain
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. rule — a law
  23. rule — government
  24. net — in sport

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