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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fall — to drop
  4. mine — for digging
  5. fall — the season
  6. track — a song
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bank — for money
  9. shower — to wash
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. track — to keep track
  14. track — a path
  15. fall — to drop
  16. bank — for money
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. pitch — completely
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. bank — of a river

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