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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  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. hand — in cards
  2. fall — to drop
  3. rash — a series
  4. last — final
  5. season — in sport
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. hand — help
  8. season — of the year
  9. present — there
  10. rash — hasty
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. last — to go on
  13. shower — rain
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. present — the time now
  16. fall — the season
  17. roll — a cake
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. fall — to drop
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. present — a gift
  22. last — finally
  23. roll — a list
  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