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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 116 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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. bore — to tire
  3. spell — magic
  4. spell — letters
  5. fork — in a road
  6. bore — to drill
  7. firm — decided
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. shower — to wash
  10. spell — a short time
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. hand — help
  14. firm — a company
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. cell — a phone
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. hand — in cards
  19. wake — a trail
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. cell — in biology
  22. firm — steady
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. cell — in a prison

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