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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. kick — in football
  7. shower — to wash
  8. deal — to handle
  9. wind — moving air
  10. face — to point toward
  11. face — part of the head
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. cap — a hat
  15. cap — a lid
  16. bark — to shout
  17. shower — rain
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. march — the month
  20. face — to confront
  21. wind — moving air
  22. cap — of ice
  23. march — music
  24. march — the month

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