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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 120 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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. tube — a container
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. fine — all right
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. fine — high quality
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. wake — a trail
  15. dip — to sink
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. bat — the animal
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. tube — the underground
  24. shower — to wash

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