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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. shower — rain
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. rash — hasty
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. shower — to wash
  8. net — in sport
  9. stem — to come from
  10. net — for catching
  11. dip — to sink
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. stock — shares
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. wind — moving air
  16. rash — a series
  17. net — after costs
  18. stock — goods
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. wind — moving air
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. dip — to dunk

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