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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. rock — music
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. dip — to sink
  8. shower — to wash
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. last — final
  13. root — the cause
  14. rock — a stone
  15. last — finally
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. shower — rain
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. root — of a plant
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. root — of a word
  22. last — to go on
  23. rush — hurry
  24. patient — a sick person

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