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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. rest — a break
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. shower — to wash
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. date — the fruit
  9. content — the amount
  10. object — an aim
  11. wake — a trail
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. race — the arms race
  14. race — a contest
  15. rest — what's left
  16. roll — a cake
  17. object — to protest
  18. object — a thing
  19. rest — what's left
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. content — happy
  22. race — humankind
  23. roll — a list
  24. wake — before a funeral

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